The Most Important Lawn Tips For Fall:

Here a quick note on the very most important thing you can do for your lawn this fall. In one word: Aeration.

Fall Lawn Tips:

Aeration is the process of pulling cores of soil from the lawn in an effort to relieve compaction and allow grass roots to grow deeper and thicker. Keep in mind that a thick root system is the key to a healthy lawn.

During the long summer, clay-based soils become extremely hard and compacted. Imagine trying to grow grass in your cement driveway. Now take that same condition in to your lawn and you will see the need to aerate.

In addition, by opening up the lawn, you allow air, water and nutrients to penetrate the soil, thus enriching it.

The final benefit with aeration is thatch management. Thatch is the layer of organic material (like dead grass) that resides just above the soil line in the turf. Some thatch is good because it helps retain moisture and prevent soil erosion. But too much can allow fungus to grow in the lawn, as well as create shallow rooting.

Aeration effectively punches holes in the thatch layer; enough to keep it to manageable levels.

On a final note: you need to use a professional core aerating machine that actually pulls cores from the soil. We don’t want to just “poke holes” as that defeats the purpose.

Go out this weekend and rent an aerator (about $50 for 4 hours) or call your local lawn contractor and get him out there to get this done for you. Fall is the time to aerate!