Let’s Discuss Aeration and Overseeding

With Spring cleaning, Spring cleanup, and all the life springing up, you may notice that some parts of your Courtice lawn aren’t so springy. But fear not because a certain amount of lawn loss over the winter is not entirely unexpected. So while now is the time to begin your lawn maintenance routine, it’s also the time to think about lawn care. And two vital elements of lawn care are aeration and overseeding. Mr. Trim focuses today’s blog on this power couple of lawn care. So let’s discuss why we aerate and overseed, what it is, and how you know you need it! Definite Aeration Aeration is an excellent word because you can almost glean the meaning by reading it. It’s the process of adding air to something. You may have heard of aerated water or concrete or seen someone aerating flour. Aerating soil is not so different. Of course, unlike all these other materials, the soil is in the ground, so we must be creative! So we fluff our soil and add air to it with a mechanical aerator. There was a time when people would aerate the soil by simply poking holes in it with what were basically long cleats. While this is part of aeration, it’s also vital to pull up the plugs of the earth as you make the holes so that the soil doesn’t become more compact when it’s poked. Define Overseeding Like aeration, you can likely guess the meaning of overseeding. It’s seeding over the ground. In the case of your lawn, spread the seeds over your grass to replace the grass that has died rather than planting it directly into the earth. How Do Aeration and Overseeding Help Your Lawn? While the benefit of overseeding is apparent to anyone who needs to grow more grass, aeration takes a little explaining. Compacted hard dirt is not conducive to plant growth. Plants need help spreading their root systems when the ground is too dense, and water is less likely to percolate down to the plants that need it. Why Do We Do Aeration and Overseeding Together It’s easy to see why aeration and overseeding go better together. Both are useful by themselves, but combined, they’re more than the sum of their parts. Aeration creates ideal soil conditions for lawn growth. That’s its entire purpose. So when you add seeds to that soil, those seeds are far more likely to find purchase, get water and nutrients, and thrive than they would be without the aeration. How Did We Get Here? Now that you understand the purpose of aeration and overseeding, you may wonder how your lawn got to the point that it needs it. There are a few reasons. Firstly, ground naturally settles over time. That’s simple gravity! When we walk upon it, we hasten that process, and if you spend time enjoying your lawn (which we hope you do), it will lead to compact soil. Secondly, water can erode the soil. The soil left behind will then get dense. And since dense soil is bad for plant growth, the plants in it will eventually die. Nothing keeps the soil in place when the plants die, making erosion more likely and restarting the process in a constant cycle! Signs Your Ground is Too Compact While you probably aren’t measuring your soil density regularly, you may be able to notice some signs that it’s becoming too compact. One of the earliest signs of dense soil is standing water or flooding. When water sits on top of your soil without going down, that’s a red flag. Further signs that you need aeration and overseeding include erosion, brown spots in your grass, loss of grass, and flooding. Don’t Wait for the Sigsn With all that said, don’t wait for the signs that you have a problem doing something about it. Aeration and overseeding are best performed together as preventative maintenance to keep your lawn healthy. While they are effective in treating the issues of compact soil and plant loss, there’s no need to wait for them to occur. Instead, schedule it as part of your regular lawn care in the Spring. Call Mr. Trim for All of Your Lawn Care Needs! Don’t wait until the heat is causing an additional strain on your grass. Instead, call Mr. Trim now to schedule your aeration and overseeding. We will cover all your lawn care needs in Spring and beyond.