Lots of people aerate their lawns, and yet you still have no idea why they do it. Just the other day, you were at your home improvement store about to purchase an aerator when you realized you had no idea what it was going to do for your lawn. Well, ponder no more; here are the benefits of lawn aeration.
Air and Water Flow – Aside from the abundance of naturally-occurring nutrients in the soil, your lawn also needs plenty of water and oxygen – aerating your lawn helps increase the water and air flow down to the root zone. Since aerating is simply the process of removing small plugs of dirt in order to improve the air and water flow, this is the biggest benefit your grass receives from aeration.
Unclogged – As we just said, aeration is the process of removing small plugs of dirt. Things like foot traffic, lawn mowers, and rain clog up the soil, making it harder and harder for new grass to grow and for fresh water to penetrate. Aeration creates room for more plants and grass to grow, thus making your lawn thicker and stronger.
Reduced Runoff – Water runoff occurs for one of two reasons. Either the soil is oversaturated, or the soil is too condensed to absorb the water. Runoff is very bad for your lawn; water runoff strips the soil of its natural nutrients, leaving plants stressed and weak. Aeration solves this problem because it loosens up the soil, allowing water to absorb more quickly.
Stronger Roots – By aerating your lawn, you create deep space in between blades of grass, this space allows water and oxygen to penetrate the soil far deeper than possible on its own. When water penetrates past the root zone, the roots begin to grow deeper in pursuit. Deeper root growth equals stronger blades of grass.