What is Core Aeration?

Core aeration is the mechanical removal of small cores of soil from the lawn using an aeration machine(as shown in picture to the left).

It is often described as the most important thing you can do to create a healthy, thick and robust lawn.

Core aeration is the secret weapon in making your lawn healthy.

Core aeration involves making holes in the lawn by "coring", extracting a plug of soil.

By aerating your lawn you provide the following benefits to your lawn and its root system:

• Oxygen gets to the roots and the soil allowing it to "breathe".
• Organic fertilizers and nutrients get access to the root system which is very important.
• Water is able to better soak the soil and reach the root system. Again vitally important.
• Core aeration helps to break up thatch. The thatch layer is the perfect environment for insects and disease. Chinch Bugs thrive in a thick thatch layer, and a variety of pathogenic turfgrass fungi can be found within a thatch layer. By keeping your thatch layer to a minimum you will reduce turf damage from insects and disease without the use of any pesticides.
• Compacted soil is loosened up allowing the root system to grow much more effeciently. The better the root system, the stronger your lawn's tolerance is to weather and foot traffic etc.

• It reduces the damage caused by drought. If your yard has compacted soil, most of the root growth occurs close to the surface. The problem with this is that it creates a lawn that is highly susceptible to drought. By core aeration, you open up the soil so water, fertilizers, nutrients, and air can penetrate deep. This encourages roots to grow deep, resulting in a lawn that is much more capable of tolerating drought.

• Core aeration reduces weeds. There are many weeds that can tolerate compacted soils better than your lawn can. If your soil is compacted it can result in an environment that is more beneficial to weed growth than lawn growth. By aerating a lawn and loosening the soil, the weeds that perform well in compacted soil lose the competitive advantage and your lawn thrives.
• After core aeration, leave the soil plugs on your lawn and allow them to dry out. You can then rake the plugs up if you like. But it's perfectly acceptable if you don't. The soil plugs will break up after the first mowing and help to breakdown thatch by providing micro organisms that will feed on thatch.

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What is Power Raking?

Power Raking is a very effective way to remove the dead debri and crust that builds up on a lawn over the winter months. It's also a gentle way to remove a small amount of thatch from the lawn without causing significant damage to your lawn.

Learn more...

What is the Spring Wake Up Program?

Some homeowners are looking for a program that jump starts their lawn in spring. They only require a few applications to help get their lawn off to a great-looking healthy start. This is where the Spring Wake Up Program comes in. Learn more...

What is the Year Long Program?

Some homeowners are looking for a program that looks after their lawn all season long. They require every necessary application for generating a great-looking healthy lawn. This is where the Year Long Program comes in. Learn more...