When Is the Best Time to Aerate Your Lawn in Illinois?

When Is the Best Time to Aerate Your Lawn in Illinois?

If you're thinking about aerating your lawn, you're probably wondering when is the best time to do it? Lawns in Illinois are filled with cool-season grass, which thrives in the cool spring and fall seasons. If you want your lawn to be the best it can be, fall is the best time to aerate it. With soil temperatures reaching around 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit, your grass is at its strongest to endure the aeration process.

You can also aerate your lawn in the spring to give your cool-season grass a much-needed boost to enter the new growing season. However, never do it in the summer. Your lawn is stressed enough already due to the heat; aerating it when it's vulnerable can only add more strain on your turf.

Fall is the best time to aerate your lawn in Illinois.

Aerating your cool-season grass should be done in the fall when it is at its peak growing point. The process of aeration can put a certain stress on your lawn, which is why it's best done when your grass is thriving. Otherwise, you might be looking at an even weaker lawn with an unappealing appearance. Your cool-season lawn is at its best in the fall because the soil temperatures in Illinois during the fall are generally around 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. What's more, aerating your lawn in the fall:

• Helps your lawn recover from the summer stress: Your cool-season lawn in Illinois recuperates from the summer heat during the fall season. Aerating it will reinforce your lawn's efforts to bounce back!
• Prepares your turf before entering winter dormancy: Aeration promotes stronger roots, something your lawn needs to survive winter dormancy.
• Boosts the effect of lawn fertilizer treatments: The primary point of aeration is to relieve soil compaction and help nutrients reach the roots of your grass. Fall aeration will help your grass maximize lawn fertilizers so it gets stronger for the winter!

You can also aerate your lawn in the spring.

If you missed the window for fall aeration, don't fret! You can also aerate your lawn in the spring as it is the second-best time to do it. The soil temperature during the spring in Illinois is ideal for grass growth. Plus, this service will loosen the compacted soil on your lawn and create pathways for nutrients and other resources to reach the roots of your turf. With improved access to these nutrients and resources, your grass will get a boost during the spring growing season and will be better prepared to take on the summer heat.

Summer Is Never a Good Time to Aerate Your Lawn

We already know that your cool-season lawn in Illinois thrives during the cooler seasons of spring and fall. But how about the summer? The summer season is a particularly stressful time for your lawn, which is why it is never a good time to aerate your lawn. It might even cause more harm to your turf than good! That's because your grass is already under a lot of stress in the summer and it won't be strong enough to endure the stress that aeration causes.

Call us today to schedule our core aeration service!

Our team at Creekside Landscapes provides our core aeration service for commercial, residential, and HOA properties in Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Bethalto, IL and nearby areas. We offer our aeration service in the spring and fall. Give us a call today at (618) 374-0010 to schedule our core aeration service!