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