Benefits of Spring Aeration | TruGreen

The benefits of aeration are clear, but often it is hard to determine the best time to aerate your lawn. Luckily, you’ve got TruGreen on your side to help you weigh the benefits of Spring lawn aeration and determine whether it is right for your yard.    

We’re going to share with you what aeration is and what happens in the Spring vs. the Fall. As a rule, lawns need aeration once per year.

Aeration is the practice of using a machine (aerator) to pull core soil plugs from your lawn. This practice has several distinct benefits to the health of your lawn:

• Reduces thatch buildup. Excessive thatch can be the root cause of poor growth and susceptibility to insects and diseases.
• Allows water, air and nutrient movement in the soil.
• Promotes root growth.
• Enhances soil microbial activity, which is a good thing.

There is no difference in the benefits of aeration whether it is performed in the spring or in the fall. As a rule of thumb, aeration can be done when the soil is not frozen, too dry or too saturated. These conditions make aeration difficult to perform and would not benefit the lawn. 

In the northern climates, melting snow and spring rainfall would make spring aeration difficult to do as the soil would be too saturated. Delaying aeration until late spring could also be problematic as the lawn would not have enough time to recover before the summer’s hot and dry conditions. It is therefore preferable for grasses in the Northern climates to be aerated in the fall versus the spring.

In the warmer climates, some grass types go dormant in the winter months, but wake up in the spring and grow well during the hot summer months.  Spring to late spring would be a great time to aerate these types of lawns. Spring and summer aeration offers the greatest benefits to these lawns versus the fall, during which time they may start to go dormant.

TruGreen offers both spring and fall aeration services.  Your specialist would take care to make sure your lawn is aerated in the right manner to provide maximum benefits from the aeration service. Although the window for spring in the Northern climates is short, it can be done with appropriate planning.

Let us help you get a Spring lawn you’ll love. Visit TruGreen.com or call 866.688.6722 today for more information about all of their lawn maintenance services.