Just as the tallest buildings need a rock-solid foundation, the lush, eye-catching lawn that you crave requires a healthy, functional root zone in the soil.

How can we achieve the perfect root zone? The answer is simple--aerate and overseed your lawn near the end of each growing season.

Aeration is properly done with professional equipment at removes plugs from the ground. The plugs are scattered on the surface of the lawn, and the holes create a fantastic place for new seeds to germinate, as they hold water but are shallow enough to receive plenty of sun.

Over time, the plugs "melt" back into the soil. The plugs allow the compacted soil to relax as new grass plants germinate, setting the stage for aeration's many benefits.

Summer heat is hard on lawns. Drought, compaction, insect infestation, weed infestation, and general heat stress put your lawn through the wringer.

After the heat of summer has finally ended, the nights are still warm and the days are still long, the perfect environment to get your lawn back into shape before winter dormancy.

Aeration Repairs the Root System

The health of your lawn occurs under the surface of the soil. Aeration opens up channels for the roots to directly receive oxygen, nutrients, and water. Think of the holes as tiny funnels that allow roots to safely stretch out and grow.

One of the primary benefits we see of regularly aerated lawns is just how well they combat and tolerate drought naturally. The deeper roots keep those lawns greener and stronger during the hottest months of the year.

With the stressful summers we've experienced in Southern Illinois, compacted soil is a common issue that's invisible to most homeowners.

Aeration Removes Lawn Waste

Landscape cannot survive without the ability to secrete waste, and if that waste is not eliminated, the turf dies.

Microbes are living organisms in the soil that cleanse this waste, and the oxygenation provided by aeration stimulates their ability to cleanse your lawn of the wastes it generates naturally.

On the flip side, harmful fungus and bacteria thrive in the conditions common to non-aerated lawns. Dead roots and low root vigor allow these infections to take hold and spread. Non-aerated lawns are daring an infection to spread.

Aeration Helps Repair Soil Chemistry

If your soil requires any type of chemistry change, aeration opens up direct channels for nutrient corrections to absorb into the soil.

For example, if a soil test reveals your yard is low in calcium, we can introduce calcium efficiently through the aeration channels, as opposed to putting it on top of the lawn and trying to wash it in with water.

Thatch Control

Lawns develop a thatch layer over time. Thatch is dead, organic material that collects between the bare soil and the top of the grass plants, and it thickens over time.

Excessive thatch becomes a mat that can block sunlight and prevent the full penetration of valuable rainwater.

Aeration removes plugs, which means a percentage of the over-thatched lawn is completely removed. Also, aeration "ventilates" the roots oppressed by the thatch layer to finally breathe and grow.

For lawns with excessive thatch, we may recommend more than one aeration to fully balance the thatch level.

Excessive thatch is another common issue we encounter, especially in lawns that are excessively watered with sprinkler systems.

A word of warning: some customers take thatch control into their own hands, using expensive dethatching machines, or raking it up by hand.

The problem is, some thatch is healthy for the lawn, and many folks totally remove the thatch layer, inviting weeds and weakness into their lawns.

Save time and effort and strike the perfect balance with aeration.

High Weed Resistance

Aeration corrects the conditions that weeds tend to love since hard, compacted soil gathers water at the surface, where the shallow roots of weeds can thrive.

As aeration stimulates thicker grass, the vigorous grass plants crowd out weeds and outcompete them for valuable resources, such as water. Taller, stronger grass plants also prevent sun from germinating weeds in your yard (another reason to mow your lawn on a rather high setting, 3.5 inches or more).