# lawn aeration: beneficial, or bullshit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 21, 2011, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232 "2011-04-21T14:35:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/21 "2011-04-22T14:17:23Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > An aside: I’m going to start my clover lawn this year (one part white clover and 15 parts drought-tolerant grass). I’ll let you guys know how it goes. 🙂 Please do. I’ve been encouraging the clover in my backyard, and the lawn is much healthier where the clover is. I tried “harvesting” the seeds from the clover, and dispersing them into the cloverless area, but I don’t think any of them took. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/22 "2011-04-22T14:25:10Z")
Hmmm. I have a hilly .60 acre lawn and I own a lawn tractor. When I bought it (used) the guy tossed in an aerator, one of those big watering/seeding wheels and the mulching attachments. I’ve attached the mulching stuff, but the aerator is still in the box and AFAICT, its never been used. I wonder if I’ll ever get tired of moving that heavy box out of the way just to get the mower out of the garage each time or if I’ll ever use it. I’ve never used one before. I’m assuming its some kind of a spiky wheel that I tow behind the tractor? ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/23 "2011-04-22T14:36:59Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > An aside: I’m going to start my clover lawn this year (one part white clover and 15 parts drought-tolerant grass). I’ll let you guys know how it goes. 🙂 Another “please do.” For five or six years all our efforts have gone into our front gardens–the back “yard” was left on its own. Moles. Carolina Creeper. The works. Aeration? Hahaha… no, really. We’ve heard of clovered lawns and would love to hear how it goes. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/24 "2011-04-22T15:06:50Z")
+1 for the clover updates. What I really want feedback on is how the clover winters. I can’t seem to find information about that anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Duality](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.duality/32/4098_2.png) [@Mr.Duality](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Duality)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/25 "2011-04-22T15:10:17Z")
Another ‘misery factor’ with power raking- it raises a tremendous amount of dust. If you don’t want to get really dirty, let a professional do it. Power rakes are not strenuous to operate if the height of the tines is properly adjusted. The machine should pull itself along, mostly. Doing a good job with a power rake is somewhat tricky. Your pace should be slow enough to do a thorough job but fast enough so as not to tear up the turf too much. It should be done before the lawn gets very green in Spring or too much of the new green grass will be torn out. Stay away from power rakes which have a bag/catcher attached. They raise much more dust, are less maneuverable and you will spend too much time emptying the bag, which fills up every 30 feet more or less. It’s way more efficient to use a hand rake to gather the loose clippings. Aeration holes are not a foot apart as stated in the OP. It’s a half inch hole every 5 inches or so. Core aeration is better than spike aeration, ---
**Author:** ![thinksnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thinksnow/32/2849_2.png) [@thinksnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thinksnow)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/26 "2011-04-22T16:58:42Z")
So, my lawn (1.25 acre) is super moist, with 2-4" soil and (hard gray & red) clay ~10-14" under the soil. Would aeration do anything for that? Water permeation isn’t an issue, except through the clay, but that is over a foot down. Our lawn will remain squishy-wet for days after a rain. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/27 "2011-04-22T17:29:35Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > +1 for the clover updates. What I really want feedback on is how the clover winters. I can’t seem to find information about that anywhere. I’m curious about that, too - I know the white clover I already have in my lawn is overwintering just fine. [Here’s a website on starting a clover lawn.](http://versicolor.ca/lawns/docs/clover.html) I can’t give you a link to my clover supplier because they can’t ship seeds across the border easily (which is a good thing), but it shouldn’t be too hard to find (my local greenhouse has started stocking mixed clover and grass seed just this year). ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/28 "2011-04-22T17:46:39Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > +1 for the clover updates. What I really want feedback on is how the clover winters. I can’t seem to find information about that anywhere. In my lawn, for even the patches that are thick with clover during the summer, it just kind of disappears. I was out looking at it a couple weeks ago, and there were a few tiny new leaves, but no old ones I could see. The grass had lots of brown blades, and some new ones coming out. Now there are more and bigger leaves, but from ten or fifteen feet away, it just looks like grass (which is also greening up). I’m in southeast Michigan, for reference. I suspect maybe rabbits or something eat the clover over winter, but I don’t really know where it goes. ETA: I should clarify it’s just the leaves that disappear. The plants survive just fine. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232/29 "2011-04-22T17:54:10Z")
Every golf course aerates twice a year, just before Spring and again around Labor day. Pain in the ass if you ask me. The process befouls the course with dirt corks. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-aeration-beneficial-or-bullshit/579232.md?page=1)