

Plug SpoonsĪ tow behind plug aerator comes with hollow metal shafts or “plugging spoons”. The two main pull-behind options for aerating your lawn are a plug spoon and a spike aerator. This is generally done with cool-season grasses like fescue and is best performed from August to October. Then you seed and water on top of the freshly aerated soil, letting the new grass seeds fill bare spots in your lawn. One of the best ways to improve the thickness of your grass and to get that deep, lush, park-like growth is through aeration and overseeding.īy first aerating the oil, you create ample room for water and air to penetrate. As a rule of thumb, you need to aerate 1-2 times a year. Ultimately, soil type becomes the greatest determining factor of how often you should aerate. If you start seeing those symptoms of compacted dirt such as pooling water, browning when you mow or thinning grass, then it might make sense to increase the frequency.Ĭlay soil, for example, require twice-yearly aeration since they compact so easily and hold water so poorly. Most lawns will only need to be aerated once a year. It is an essential piece of any high-end lawncare. This helps break up compacted dirt and allows water and nutrients to penetrate to grass roots.
#PULL BEHIND SPIKE AERATOR SERIES#
What is Lawn Aeration?Īerating is rolling a series of spikes across the ground to create holes in the dirt. As the critters crawl through your soil, they further aerated it. Well-aerated soil allows for worms and centipedes to thrive. Of course, the main piece of aeration is to allow more air into the soil. The new core pathways also help with water absorption, allowing the water to settle deeply by the roots instead of instantly evaporating in the sunshine. If you have closely compacted soil, that lets your grass grow deep roots, you will enjoy a lawn that is lush and more resistant to short-rooted weeds.įurthermore, your grass will be more resistant to both disease and drought.Īeration removes cores from your soil, providing that necessary room for more root depth. The quality of the soil dictates the quality of your lawn. Some folks also aerate and seed in the early spring. If you have a lawn aerator, it is good to aerate once every fall.

However, as the years go by, the thatch builds up, and repeated mowing, high traffic, heavy rains and dry summer spells cause the ground to become compacted. A well-aerated lawn allow air, moisture, and nutrients to penetrate into the soil and helps microorganisms to thrive. Puddles, worn areas and thinning grass are all symptoms of a yard that needs aeration. A 40-inch tow behind aerator will not turn as sharply and may mean that you cannot get as close to some objects. Keep in mind that it should be wider than your lawn tractor to provide more coverage and faster aeration with fewer passes. If the ground is wet, you can get away with as little as 120 pounds which will still give you good depth without leaving wheel marks on the lawn. In dry conditions, you will need to put 300 pounds of weight on your lawn aerator to get a deep coring action. Most of the time, you will only want 2-3 inches of soil penetration. The key thing that determines the effectiveness of a pull behind aerator is how much weight is on it.

Walk-behind lawn aerators are a bit more aggressive, which causes folks to question whether a pull behind aerator can get the job done. They make it easy to quickly aerate a large space and break up the soil. Zachary Drumm How Well Do Pull Behind Aerators Work?įor folks who already have a lawnmower, a tow behind aerator is the best choice for large lawns, golf courses and athletic fields.
