Why Should You Poke Holes in Your Lawn?

As the school season picks up speed, homeowners begin to prepare for the coming autumn. September is prime time for planting fall vegetable gardens, tidying summer flower beds, and preparing grass for fall. If you have cool season turfgrass, it’s time to plan fall aeration and overseeding.

Why Aerate and Overseed?

As kids play in the yard and summer leeches moisture from the earth, Georgia soil compacts. Compacted soil prevents moisture and nutrients from reaching plant roots, stunting the growth of turfgrass and other vegetation. Aeration removes plugs of earth, allowing plantlife essentials to reach the roots of your grass. Overseeding scatters those holes with fresh seed, rejuvenating brown, trampled, or bare patches in the yard. Yearly aeration and overseeding gives cool-weather lawns a burst of life, preparing them for fresh fall growth.

Aerating and Overseeding Georgia Lawns

aerating the lawn by hand

Sick of manual aeration? Rent an aerator from Ace.

Landscaping experts recommend aerating and overseeding Georgia lawns between mid-September and early October. There are two types of aerators: core aerators and spike aerators. Core aerators use hollow tines to remove small plugs of earth, allowing oxygen and water to reach the roots of the grass. Spike aerators insert narrow metal prongs into the earth, creating a narrow hole without removing any of the compacted soil. Studies show that core aerators are more effective in encouraging new grass growth than spike aerators. Aerate your lawn using an aeration machine or a push aerator. If you don’t like the plugs of earth left behind, gently rake the yard to remove them from the lawn. After aerating your lawn, overseed sparse areas to cultivate fresh grass.

Ace Equipment Rental

An aeration machine reduces the time and effort necessary to aerate your lawn. Rent landscaping equipment like aerators, tillers, sod cutters, and lawn rollers at Ace of Gray. Rent a lawn aerator at just $10 for 4 hours or $25 for 24 hours.

photo from flickr