BESTPRACTICES
It is the mission of Stream Team to protect and enhance water resources and associated habitats and wildlife in Thurston County through citizen action and education. Stream Team is funded and jointly managed by the stormwater utilities of the Cities of Lacey, Olympia and Tumwater and Thurston County. www.streamteam.info
LawnaerationiskeytorenovatingyourlawnDidyouknowfallistheperfecttimetohelpyourlawngrowstrongerandhealthier?Oneofthebestwaystogive
yourlawnwhatitneedsisbyaeratingit.Butwhatexactlyisaeratingandhowcanyoudoit?Aerationistheprocessofpunchingholesinthesoilto
optimizenutrient,air,andwaterflow.Oftentimesthesoilbeneathyourlawniscompacted,notallowingthesekeycomponentstocirculatewell.Compactedsoilsleadtoshallowandweakrootsandpoorlawnappearance.Aerationcanimprovethephysicalpropertiesofsoil
resultinginahealthier,moreresilientlawn.Lawnaerationhelps:
• Improvesoiltexture,structure,densityandporosity
• Increasemicrobialactivityinsoil• Increasenutrientuptakebygrassroots
• Decreasestormwaterrunoffbyincreasingstormwaterinfiltration
Nowthatyou’vedecidedtoaerate,herearesomeeasytipstofollow:
1.Chooseyouraeratorrental• Optfora“core”typeaeratorthatpulls2–3inchplugs.
• Teamupwithyourneighborstorentalawnaeratorandaerateafewlawnsinoneday.• Useacompanythatmaintainstheirequipmentandtakesthetimetogooversafeandproperoperationwithyou.IfyoulivewithinOlympiacitylimits,visitolympiawa.gov/stormwaterandlearnhowtorentanaeratorforfree!
2.Removeanyobstaclesfromyouryard• Handpullweedswhengroundismoistandbeforetheydevelopdeeproots.• Mowyourlawnsoyouraeratorhaslesslayerstogothrough.• Rakeandcompostleaves,sticks,andgrassclippings.• Flagsprinklerheads,valves,andmeterstohelpyousteerclear.3.Checksoilmoisture• It’sbesttoaeratewhenthesoilismoist,nottoosoggyortoodry.
FallistheTimetoRenovateYourLawn!
Choosingtherightfertilizermatters.Avoidlawnfertilizerproductssuchasweedandfeed,whichusuallycontain2,4-Dherbicides,thathavebeenlinkedtocancerindogs(tinyurl.com/HerbDogCancer).Foralistofsaferlawnproducts,visitGrowSmartGorowSafe.org
BESTPRACTICES:FallistheTimetoRenovateYourLawn! 2of2
It is the mission of Stream Team to protect and enhance water resources and associated habitats and wildlife in Thurston County through citizen action and education. Stream Team is funded and jointly managed by the stormwater utilities of the Cities of Lacey, Olympia and Tumwater and Thurston County. www.streamteam.info
• Ifthesoilistoowet,youmaydamagethelawnanditmaybedifficulttooperatetheaerator.• Ifthesoilisdehydratedandhard,itcanbedifficulttopullagoodcore.4.Aeratecarefully• Walktheaeratorbackandforth,overlappingruns25–50percent.• Overlap2–3times,inoppositedirections,aroundhightrafficareasandatedgeoflawn.• Leaveyourplugsonthegroundtodecomposeandreleasenutrients.5.GiveyourlawnsomeTLC
• Overseedyourlawninearlyfalloncerainsbegintokeepseedsmoistduringgermination.Athickhealthylawnisyourbestdefenseagainstweeds.
• ChooseaPacificNorthwestseedmixthatisblendedtosuittheamountofsunlightyourlawnreceives.• Applya“prilledtype”limeifyoursoilpHisbelow6.0(nomorethan35lbs.per1,000sq.ft.perapplication).• Ifyouaregoingtofertilize,selectafertilizercontaining>50%“slow-release”nitrogen(naturalorganicfertilizersareusuallyslow-release),andcarefullyfollowtheapplicationinstructionsonthebag.
Formoreinformationonaerating,howtohaveabeautifullawnusingnaturallawncaremethodsandtoseeourlawncarevideoseries,visitstreamteam.info/actions/lawncare/.
FallLawnCareTip:RakethoseLeaves!Rakefallenleavesofflawntoavoidlawndieback.
Alternatively,mulchmowlightlayersofleavesintolawn.
Source:StreamTeamNews,Spring2011