Is Aeration and Overseeding the Secret to a Thicker, Stronger Albuquerque Lawn?

Aeration is the process of removing cores of soil from your Albuquerque lawn. The simple term for this process is called lawn aeration. You can remove lawn aeration cores either by hand or by machine. Think of a core that’s about 1-2 inches being ripped out thousands of times in your average homeowner’s lawn. When you’re seeding your lawn, take the success of your lawn seed one step further by double aerating your lawn. Make sure you aerate in a crisscross pattern. By doing this you’ll have twice as many holes for your seeds to fall into. More holes equal a thicker lawn in the long run.

Why Should I Aerate and Overseed My Albuquerque Lawn?

Lawn aeration and seeding your lawn is the number one mechanical and practical lawn maintenance practice any homeowner can do to enhance the overall quality and health of their lawn. Some reasons to aerate and overseed include:

• It reduces soil compaction.
• Allows for increased oxygen uptake into the plant roots.
• Allows for increased root development.
• Allows for improved nutrient uptake.
• Allow plants to use water more efficiently.

Improves plant’s ability to stand up to environmental and natural stress like heat, insects and diseases.

When the aeration cores are pulled from the lawn, they’re deposited onto the surface of the lawn. Inside these cores there are millions of microbes. The microbes become hungry and start feeding on thatch as well as the debris that is laid on top of the lawn thereby breaking thatch and debris down. This excess food source allows these microbes to multiply within the lawn.

When applying lawn seed, apply the proper amount of seed per square foot based on the variety or blend you have purchased. Seed labels will tell you how much seed per square foot you need to apply. Tall Fescue seed should be applied at 5lbs. per 1000ft. Square. Much like core aeration, you should apply the lawn seed in a checkerboard or crisscross pattern. The reason you want to do this is that there will be plenty of seeds blowing or falling into holes. Remember grass cannot grow if there is not good contact with the soil.

The last step to seeding your lawn is to back drag the lawn with a metal mat. This mat is what they use to back drag baseball fields. This knocks the seed into the holes thereby giving it good seed to soil contact.

When Should I Aerate and Seed My Albuquerque Lawn?

Aerating your lawn at the correct time is very important. Cool-season grasses such as Kentucky Bluegrass or Tall Fescue should be aerated in late summer going into fall. In most cases this will be from mid-August to mid-October. Warm-season grasses like Zoysias or Bermudas should be aerated when they are actively growing. For these turfgrasses that would be early summer.

Do I Need to Aerate My Lawn Before Seeding?

Should I Aerate My Albuquerque Lawn Before Seeding? Lawn aeration should always be done before seeding your lawn. Aerating allows the seed to easily penetrate the soil. When the seeds contact the soil, germination will take place.

Will Aerating My Lawn Kill Ants?

Aerating will help control ants, but it is likely that you’ll still have ants even after aeration. This is because core aeration doesn’t kill ants. Think of core aeration this way. The holes that are created when aerating are about the size of a pencil. Ant colonies can stretch over large areas in your lawn. Because of this you’ll likely still have ants after aeration.

Will Core Aerating My Albuquerque Lawn Kill Mushrooms?

Core Aeration can help control mushrooms by alleviating soil compaction. However, if your lawn has mushrooms it is likely there is excessive moisture. Go buy a moisture meter and check. If the grass is wet down to at least 4″ then your lawn has too much moisture. Mushrooms will grow anywhere there’s excessive moisture.

Can Core Aeration Level My Albuquerque Lawn?

Yes. Core Aeration can help level your lawn out. When you pull cores from the lawn it allows the soil to be redistributed when the cores decompose. If you have areas in your lawn that are uneven due to either bumps or hills core aeration may help. Lawn aeration creates small pockets in the lawn and will eventually help to fill in these low spots.

Again, if your lawn is extremely low in certain areas you may have to add topsoil or bring in a box blade to level out these areas. Lawn aeration is not going to happen overnight. You may have to have your lawn core aerated numerous times over the course of several years to see significant results.

As mentioned previously by correctly aerating and overseeding your lawn you can have a green lawn that’s friendlier to the environment and uses less pesticides. For more information on Albuquerque lawn aeration service and overseeding your lawn, contact R & S Landscaping at 505-271-8419.