Oftentimes, when you think of your lawn's overall health, you might jump to aspects like the color, blade length, or even the presence of bare spots. Well, just like any other plant you have in your garden, the health of the soil underneath your grass plays a huge role in your lawn's health!
One of these often-unseen aspects of soil health is something we call soil compaction, and it's exactly what it sounds like: the level of density to your soil. Over time, your lawn's soil can become unknowingly over compacted, leading to some visible issues in your lawn's growth.
What Causes Soil Compaction?
Most of the time, soil compaction is the direct result of prolonged, repeated activity on your lawn's surface in a specific area. Now obviously if you have a car parked or other large item you store on an area of your lawn then the soil will most likely be suffering from over compaction, but there are some other ways your soil can become compacted that you may not realize.Increased foot traffic on your lawn, especially during your lawn's dormant period, can cause soil compaction. Think of incidences where you may walk your pets in a specific area of your lawn all the time, or even your kids playing or running around on a certain area; all of these can cause soil compaction over time.
What Does Compaction Do?
Soil is more than just dirt; soil is made up of minerals, living organisms, water, and most importantly air. When soil compaction occurs, essentially the soil's structure deteriorates. When the soil becomes too dense, air and essential gasses like oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide cannot pass through.The lack of clear passages for air and water in turn will weaken your lawn's root structure over time. When you take a moment to zoom in and understand the make-up of your soil you may now be wondering, how can I de-compact my soil to let it breathe?
The Solution to Soil Compaction
A couple of ways that you can minimize soil compaction going forward can be creating or diverting your foot traffic away from your lawn, mowing your lawn a little higher, and even by dethatching your lawn every now and then.The only solution for soil that is already compacted is through core aeration. This is a process where a machine pokes small holes and removes plugs of soil from the ground, in turn allowing root systems to have more room to grow.
How AgroPro Can Help
We already know that soil compaction is one of the biggest obstacles we face in Georgia, that's why AgroPro offers yearly core aeration services to help relieve your lawn of compaction and thatch build-up. Contact us today to learn more about scheduling your upcoming spring aeration.