Lawn care needn’t be a complex topic, but some things are best understood after some clarification! Particularly when two similar concepts are under discussion, such as scarification and aeration.
At first glance these two methods of lawn care are quite similar – yet they serve different purposes, and are used for different reasons!
If you’ve ever wondered about the differences and similarities between scarifiers and aerators, then this article is for you!
Scarifiers
Scarification is something that most lawns can benefit from, at least occasionally! It’s not something that you’ll want to do too often, as over-scarifying can actually damage your lawn. However, done appropriately, it’s a great way to ensure that your lawn will continue to grow well and look healthy season after season!
Lawns will often build up something called thatch. Thatch is the result of dead grass stalks not being able to fully rot away. This is because of lignin, a substance in the grass. Instead of breaking down fully, dead grass instead lingers on, becoming an obstacle to new growth.
So, without proper care, thatch can build up on your lawn, making it difficult for new growth to spread and repopulate the dead areas.
Too much thatch means that not enough water, air, and light can reach the new growth. This happens when it reaches a thickness of 0.5-1.5 centimetres – leaving the thatch to develop any more this is asking for difficulties with your lawn!
A scarifier’s job is to rip this thatch out of the lawn! It’s essentially a rotating rake on wheels that can get right down deep and grab all of the dead grass stalks out of there.
This is so much easier than trying to do this with a rake by hand, and will get a lot more thatch out. Particularly if you’re using a powered model! Scarification can be quite a labour-intensive process, which is why powered scarifiers are often popular tools.
Scarification is quite hard on your lawn – after doing it, your lawn can often look quite a mess! This is normal, however – and also the reason why it’s important to only scarify sparingly, and only ever at the right time of year. Doing it at the wrong time can cause damage!
For light scarification, it’s best to work from mid April to June, and late summer to the beginning of autumn. Deep scarification should only really be done in autumn – this is a good time for your lawn to be able to recover from the process.
Scarification in winter is often a really bad idea, as not only is it going to be difficult work, but in weather cold enough to have frozen ground you could actually end up damaging the lawn.
Pros And Cons Of Scarifying
Pros
- Eventually improves the look of your lawn
- Helps stop the buildup of weeds
- Clearing thatch can also help your lawn feel less bouncy to walk on
Cons
- Will likely make your lawn look worse in the short term
- Can be damaging to your lawn if overdone, or in the wrong conditions
- Can be hard work!
Aerators
Aeration is a different process, and is also something that lawns can benefit from – again, though, not too often!
While aeration can help break up thatch in your lawn, that’s not really the primary purpose of it. Instead, aeration is a method that you use to keep the soil itself in tip-top condition.
Over time, it’s inevitable that even the loosest soil will get a little bit compacted. Lawns are of course likely to have soil compaction happen. They’re often the place where the most activity goes on in the garden, whether it’s garden parties, relaxation, or kids and pets running around!
It’s not something that you can avoid, even if you never walk on your lawn again – over time, soil will naturally sink and compact a little. Therefore, most lawns can benefit from a little help with the matter!
An aerator’s job is to help with soil compaction. Now, if there were no grass, and this were just bare soil, you could simply dig and till the soil to loosen it up.
However, try that with your lawn, and you’ll just end up with some fresh holes where grass used to be. Instead, an aerator pokes tiny little holes – or, in some cases, actually removes tiny little plugs of soil from the ground!
This helps the soil to become less compacted, and also can have other benefits. For instance, it can help to improve the drainage of your lawn. If you have thick clay soil, your soil may actually benefit from being aerated more often than with other soil types.
If you notice that puddles form on your lawn after rain, or watering, that it’s a sign that your soil may have drainage issues. It’s a good time to get on your hands and knees and give the soil a little bit of a poke. If it’s really hard, then your soil is compacted – which could well be the source of any drainage problems.
Aeration can also help nutrients get into the soil more easily – especially if using a lawn feed. It can be a really useful thing to do to your lawn, when appropriate. However, like scarification, aeration should only be done when appropriate, and never at the wrong time of year.
From March to November is generally fine, although it’s important not to aerate in winter, or when your grass is dormant. If your grass is in a dormant period, then it’s possible for aeration to do permanent damage to your lawn.
Pros And Cons Of Aerating
Pros
- If your soil is compacted, aeration can help
- Patches with little growth can be improved with aeration
- Water and fertilizer can reach roots better
Cons
- Needs special equipment – renting can cost
- Can also damage the lawn if done too often or at the wrong time – possibly permanently!
- Can also be very hard work!
Conclusion
There you are – an explanation of the fundamental differences between scarification and aeration, and the pros and cons of each. Hopefully this article has provided you useful information about them, and helps you decide what’s best for your lawn!
