Lawn (Core) Aeration

Maple Leaf Inc. likes to start lawn aeration in early spring, late summer or early fall. Depending on your soil type and the traffic on your lawn, it may need aerating every second or third season. Despite all the claims about aerating your lawn by wearing spikes attached to your shoes, mechanical core or plug aerators are the only good ways to aerate a lawn. These machines pull up a core of soil and leave it on the surface of the soil. This does the best job.

These machines should pull out plugs that are about the size of your little finger. It may sound like too many holes, but the aerator should be run back and forth until there are 20-40 holes in every square foot. The holes allow for air, rain and nutrients to penetrate the soil better. It also gives the roots room to grow. The lawn will look rough for a few weeks, but the benefits you will see with your lawn will be worth the wait. With the core aeration, the machines leave the cores on the surface to dissolve over the next few weeks in the rain. The soil in the cores contains millions of microorganisms that help digest thatch naturally, creating a much healthier lawn.

With core aeration it helps encourage deep rooting; increases air in the soil, improves water and nutrient penetration, helps break down thatch and encourages growth of beneficial soil microorganisms.

Maple Leaf Inc. encourages all customers to consider lawn aeration to their lawn about once every year to combat the harsh Wisconsin seasons to ensure a healthy and lush lawn.