Does your lawn have a compaction problem?
If your lawn has thin areas of grass, if it goes very brown throughout the hot months of summer, drains poorly,or even if it just struggles to grow throughout the year, then there is a good chance that it is suffering from a soil compaction problem.
What is the cause of this compaction?
Foot traffic, lawn mowing and even gravity and rain causes compaction on your lawn. This squeezing together of the upper surface of soil reduces the ability of air, water and nutrients to penetrate through into the root zone. This has an adverse effect on the quality and visual appearance of your lawn.
There is a solution… aeration!
Of the two possible types of aeration I offer, solid-tine aeration is generally more of a maintenance aeration treatment. It keeps your lawn looking great through the summer and to allow it to cope with extra foot traffic. If you have a severe compaction problem, hollow-tine aeration would be the more recommended treatment. I will be able to advise as to which treatment would be most beneficial for your lawn.
Solid tine aeration uses sharp spikes to push thousand of holes into the ground, allowing the soil to relax and breathe, and creating channels through which air, water and nutrients travel, helping to strengthen the grass root system.
It is a fabulous treatment for thick, established lawns which you are trying to keep looking green for the summer, and is also a great way to help any granular fertilisation treatment reach the grass roots quickly.
It is also a great treatment to apply during hot weather. opening the soil and preventing water run-off keeps your grass green during drought conditions.
Information about solid tine aerating
Benefits of solid tine aerating
- It loosens the soil, improving drainage.
- Increases the rooting depth of the grass, which in turn strengthens it.
- It allows gasses to be exchanged in the soil, preventing it from becoming stagnant.
- Increases the rate at which soil breaks down thatch.
- It allows water to make it’s way down to the grass roots quickly.
- It improves the effectiveness of subsequent fertilisation treatments
- More cost effective than Hollow tine aerating
- It is one of the most beneficial treatments that can be done to your lawn!
Disadvantages of solid tine aeration treatment
- It’s not the most effective treatment for heavily compacted areas
Recommended time of year for application
– If conditions allow – Recommended timeA solid-tine aeration treatment can be applied at any time of year, as long as the ground is not too hard from drought or frost or too wet.
Weather conditions needed for application
You can run an aeration machine in all weathers, as long as the soil conditions are suitable.
Lawn preparation
There is no preparation needed before a solid tine aeration treatment can be applied.
Time needed to apply the treatment
This does depend on the size of your lawn, however, I usually estimate around an hour per hundred square meters.
Treatment waste
Solid tine aeration produces no waste that needs to be disposed of.
Lawn aftercare
Unless I have applied a supplementary treatment with the aeration, your lawn can be used straight after the treatment.