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The secret behind a perfect lawn lies in your efforts towards your lawn maintenance. The whole process gets more manageable if you know the best way to aerate a small lawn. Well, lawn maintenance doesn’t only require watering and mowing. But, you should also invest your valuable time to aerate your lawn.
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Why aeration?
Aeration is a crucial factor that promotes the growth of grass. Aeration is the method of perforating compact soil with the help of aerators.
So, oxygen and other essential nutrients could get into the roots of grass and promote healthy growth.
But due to foot traffic, a thatched layer usually forms between soil and grass. However, this layer blocks the movement of nutrients and oxygen towards the root by acting as a barrier. Consequently, your lawn grass will turn brown and lose its lush green appearance.
Therefore, aeration has become a mandatory factor for your lawn maintenance. So, if you’re willing to aerate your lawn, you may want to know the best way to aerate a small lawn. Surprisingly, it’s relatively easy to aerate a small lawn than other maintenance methods.
Let’s know about the effective way of aeration. So, you can get back the glamour and radiance of your lawn to spend your spare time there.
The best way to aerate small lawn
Everybody knows that lawns are always an epicenter of relaxation and peace because you can exhale all your depression there after a hectic day and inhale serenity.
But, lawn maintenance also requires your attention. Mowing or watering your lawn will enhance your lawn look. But, it’s not enough.
However, if you’re experiencing brown or damaged grass on your lawn, then you need to aerate your lawn immediately.
Do you know that aerating could alter the entire look of your lawn? Therefore, you have to aerate your lawn annually, depending upon its soil conditions.
So, if you own a small lawn and want to know the best way to aerate a small lawn, you will find out your answer here.
There are several ways to aerate small lawns with the help of aerators. But, two basic types of aerators will work effectively depending on the soil condition of your lawn.
Spike aerators for soil that could easily crumble
The aerating method depends upon the type of soil within your lawn. Firstly, you have to examine your soil condition.
Therefore, you can utilize spike aerators that will help you to aerate your lawn effectively. In that regard, you can use a garden fork or garden aeration shoes.
If your lawn soil could easily crumble instead of containing lumps, your lawn soil is high in loam along with sand and humus.
● A Garden fork is a handheld aerating tool that has spikes to perforate soil.
● It will result in holes within the soil, and you have to push this fork in a forwarding and backward direction.
With the help of a fork, all grassroots will get access to oxygen and other necessary elements. So, you will soon experience better grass growth in your lawn.
● Garden aerator shoes are also an aerating source for soils that could easily crumble. Moreover, you also need to moisten your lawn soil before aerating.
You just need to put on your aeration shoes that have a sandals-like appearance. Well, you can put on these garden aerator shoes on your regular or mowing shoes quickly.
Moreover, these shoes have a set of spikes that will create holes within the soil. Therefore, you can use these shoes while mowing your lawn. It will save you time and will do two different tasks simultaneously.
Plug aerators for compacted soils
Plug aerators are also known as core aerators. You can use plug aerators for compacted soils. Mostly, our lawns experience heavy foot traffic or bear the burden of other bulky items.
Consequently, your lawn soil will be full of lumps that act as a pediment in the way of macro and micronutrients. Well, grassroots require these nutrients for their survival.
Therefore, plug aerators have specific hollow tines to take out compact soil and left spaces there.
In this way, you can easily perforate compacted soil that is a source of damaging grass in your lawn.
Most importantly, you need specific conditions for using plug aerators. Well, plug aerators work effectively on moist soil.
You can use plug aerators during early spring because they will nourish roots with all essential ingredients necessary for healthy growth.
Now, you can decide the best way to aerate small lawns depending on your lawn soil condition.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What should we do after aerating lawns?
You can do multiple tasks after aerating your lawn. Try to replant grass to the areas where the grass is thin. Moreover, you can also use fertilizer. So, you can provide all necessary nutrients to the grassroots.
How can I prepare my lawn before aerating?
You can water your lawn before one or two days of aeration. It also depends upon the dryness within the lawn soil.
Well, you can also aerate your lawn after one day of rain. It will help out to lock all rainwater minerals within the soil easily.
How much time does the lawn take to heal after aeration?
The recovery period could depend upon the type of holes and use of the aerator. But, in most cases, it takes three to four weeks to recover the lawn from holes.
Conclusion
Knowing the best way to aerate a small lawn will be a source of aesthetic pleasure to your eyes after aeration.
Because aeration promotes the grassroots’ growth by providing all vital supplements, aerators are helping tools in the maintenance of the lawn.
You can choose an aerator according to your soil type. But, plug or core aerators work effectively and provide long-lasting effects as compared to spike aerators. Spike aerators are productive but only provide short-term consequences.