When is soil aeration needed?

When Do You Need to Aerate? How Long Does It Last?

A 12-month study looked at some key questions relating to when soil aeration is needed and its frequency. Gilba Solutions are Sydney-based independent sports turf consultants and turf agronomists. 

This work is relevant to lawn owners, sports grounds and councils. It relates to the timing of aeration work, reseeding and when to apply pre emergent herbicides.

Our recent blog on the science of soil aeration may also be of interest. The aim of this study was to answer the these questions:

1. How does use affect on soil compaction?
2. What are the most best strategies to alleviate compaction? vertidraining or hollow tine aeration?
3. How effective are these?
4. How long does compaction relief persist when the ground is under constant use?
5. Do you need to aerate on a regular basis?

This work dovetails with our turf blog on pre-emergent herbicide failure.

Findings

Initial results sowed surface and deep-seated compaction. This was resulting in poor drainage, and water pooling after rain.

This study started in August 2021 with the use of hollow tine aeration and vertidraining. Aeration commenced in December 2021.

Soil compaction levels above 2000 Kpa, were regraded as the maximum limit before they affect turf root growth.

Conclusions.

• Vertidraining is not as effective as hollow tine aeration to manage surface compaction.
• Continued use completely counters any work carried out. Compaction relief is an ongoing process rather than a ‘’one-off’’ treatment.
• The answer to the question “when is soil aeration needed” is as often as possible.
• A combination of vertidraining and hollow tine aeration gives far better results than any stand-alone treatment.
• You could still see areas above 2000 KPa after aeration work. This further supports an ongoing programme.
• The dual approach (vertidraining and hollow tine aeration) significantly reduces compaction. However, it did not seem to have addressed high levels below a 50 mm depth.
• These results suggest that any work carried out doesn’t last more than 3 months under constant use.
• Many schools and councils carry out aeration work once or twice a year. This work suggests that this is not often enough to maintain quality surfaces.
• If there is are high percentage of fine particles, the frequency of this work becomes even more important.
• Better targeting of compaction at depth is important to ensure that aeration achieves what it is supposed to do.

Graph showing variation in compaction readings over 2000 KPa threshold at varying depths over time

Graph showing variation in compaction readings over 2000 KPa threshold over time at varying depths