AERATION , IRRIGATION & DRAINAGE
and a soil that allows free percolation is unlikely to remain waterlogged for very long and so will have a firm dryish surface soon after heavy rain .
When to aerate ? Some people would have us aerate whenever the mower has passed over the turf , but that could be considered excessive . Aerate whenever there are signs of poor grass growth or surface water accumulation , but you must be able to get the aerating instrument be it tine , prong , knife or probe into the surface and out again without damaging the surface or the machine . Clay soils bake hard in dry conditions and aeration contributes to soil water depletion in very dry conditions , so aeration is best done in all but the hot summer months .
How to aerate ? There are a lot of different techniques available starting with a good old garden fork pushed into a lawn , through spikes the size of smallish nails on a pedestrian pushed roller through large spikes that reach 150mm into the surface to slitting knives some of which simply slice into the turf to others that slice the turf and shake it . We then enter the world of deeper aeration where the Vertidrain can penetrate to about 400mm with solid probes but here we are beginning to have to use rather heavy equipment with the biggest vertidrain unit weighing in at well over a tonne plus a substantial tractor to tow and power it .
To go deeper the air injection technique is used to lift and fracture the soil profile . The number of available machines reaching 450 to 500 mm is quite large RobinDagger Air2go , Terraspade , etc with deeper aeration to 1-metre depth being available from the Terrain Aeration Terralift machine .
Terrain Aeration specialises in deep penetration aeration to a depth of one metre where a blast of compressed air fractures the soil , creating fissures that allow drainage and oxygen to the roots of the grass or trees .
Terrain Aeration 01449 673783 www . terrainaeration . co . uk
14 GroundskeepingJournal . co . uk | January 2022