Toughen up your turf for spring... NOW!

Fall is the time to restore and strengthen your lawn for the winter and a fast start next spring. Like trees and shrubs, grass plants take in nutrients to store for the winter and convert for the energy needed to grow in the spring.

Aeration is a popular service that improves drainage, promotes deep root growth and turns the soil to help cycle nutrients and loosen the soil. Aeration now provides better absorption of late fall fertilizer applications.

Effective aeration requires at least two passes of the aerator at angles to leave a pattern of evenly- spaced cores. The depth of the cores should be around 2” or more for best results. Soft soils make this possible without great effort; sprinklers or rain before an aeration is important.

The mess left behind is the plugs of soil and grass which need to break down into the lawn. Sprinklers and rain will help speed the breakdown process. Raking and time are also helpful. Heavy clay concentration takes longer.

Aeration is also effective in the Spring if a fall aeration isn’t possible but must be done before an application of a pre-emergent weed preventer or the barrier will be broken and weeds will proliferate.

Like any plant, grass grows best when the roots are unrestrained by dense, packed soil. Aeration is the best way to soften things up for a denser, lush lawn next year