What is aeration and dethatching and why is it so important in St George, Washington, Hurricane, Ivins, Santa Clara and everywhere else in Southern Utah?

Aeration and Power Raking is a very important part of creating a strong, healthy and great looking lawn. These services are periodical services that help to increase drought tolerance, water absorption, root stimulation, grass growth and overall look.

Aeration is the process of allowing air to pass to the soil and roots of lawn or turf. An aerator is a heavy machine or device pulled behind a riding lawn mower that puts tines into the ground and removes plugs from the soil. Another way of aerating the turf is to tear small holes in the lawn or poke holes in the lawn without plugs.

Because Southern Utah has so much clay, the soil becomes very compact. This hinders root growth and water absorption. Here in Southern Utah, it is more important that other places to aerate.

Dethatching is the process of removing organic debris from your lawn (also known as thatch). Dethatching can be done both manually and power assisted. A power rake is a machine that passes over grass with vertical blade tines and pulls up old, dead grass clippings, otherwise known as thatch. Manual raking is also a way to de-thatch the grass but involves a significant amount of labor.

So why should you aerate?

Aeration is important for your grass to be as healthy as possible and look its best. Aeration should be done at least annually but for best results can be done twice a year, in the spring and early fall. Benefits includes:

• Improving the exchange between the soil and atmosphere
• Increasing water absorption
• Reducing water runoff and puddling which reduces fungus and mold
• Stimulating root development
• Reducing soil compaction
• Increasing the tolerance to heat and drought stress
• Improving resiliency and cushioning
• Enhancing thatch breakdown