Homeowners often don’t recognize the problems that may arise due to soil compaction. Problems that are often blamed on diseases, insects, lack of water or fertilizer are often the result of compacted soil. Compacted soil occurs when the top 4 inches or so of soil becomes compressed which impedes air flow, nutrients, and water from reaching the roots of the grass. Compacted soil stresses the grass resulting in weakened ability to compete with weeds and slower recuperation from injury.
Compacted soil increases the accumulation of thatch because the reduced oxygen levels in compressed soil will impair the activity of beneficial earthworms and other organisms that decompose the thatch. Left unaddressed, thatch leads to significant pests problems. Thatch tends to build up quicker on compacted soil than it does on soil that is well-aerated. As a result, some lawns may require Lawn Aeration in Spokane, Washington to keep it at its healthiest.
The best solution for compacted soil is to aerate it. This is basically a process by which small plugs of soil are removed, leaving behind holes in the soil. Aeration of a large expanse of lawn requires a power-driven aerator, which can either be rented through lawn and garden centers or can be performed by a landscaping company. The aerator works by driving tines or hollow tubes into the ground which remove plugs of soil spreading them across the lawn as the machine moves along. The size of tines varies from 3/4 of an inch to one inch and can penetrate the soil up to three inches. The closer the tines are together the more soil that is removed. This exposes more surface area allowing more water and fertilizer movement to occur, therefore reducing compaction quicker.
After lawn Aeration in Spokane, the lawn will have small plugs of pulled soil spread across it. After a week or so, they will break apart and recede into the lawn. At about one or two weeks post aeration, the holes will start to fill with actively growing grass roots — signs that the grass is receiving more oxygen, water, and nutrients from the soil. On compacted areas with slopes, an immediate difference in signs of water pooling and irrigation runoff should be observed.
