Turf Renovation

Healthy, green turf requires more than regular mowing, fertilizing and irrigating. Mother Nature can take a toll on lawns. Too much rain brings disease and severe drought creates dead spots. Turf Renovation combats both of these issues by improving soil conditions to ensure beautiful turf over the long term.

Turf renovation can involve many steps, require different treatments, and use a variety of tools. By definition turf renovation treatments involve at least one of the following: Overseeding, dethatching, aeration, power-raking, turf replacement, soil improvement, soil aeration, fertilizer application and top dressing. Turf renovation machinery includes aerators, dethatchers, seeders, power-rakes, and core harvesters.

Overseeding improves a lawn significantly and makes it much harder for weeds to become established.  Grass needs to be revitalized every few years or when stressed heavily.  Overseeding also compensates for that natural slowdown of the turf’s reproduction keeping the lawn thick, dense, and disease resistant. The best time to start a new lawn or overseeding project is just prior to the grass’s season of most vigorous growth.

Before

After

The four primary benefits of overseeding are:

• Filling in bare spots.
• Improving turf density and color.
• Helping lawns withstand insects, disease, drought, shady conditions, and heavy traffic.
• Reducing the amount of fertilizer, water, and pesticides required.

Three features to consider in a professional seeder are:

1) Seedbox:

• Look for units with a raised seed box. If a seed box sits too low to the ground, moisture on the grass when seeding early in the day can cause seed in the hopper to clump or clog the hopper opening. Look for a seed box that sits higher up on the unit to help eliminate seed clumping.
• Look for a unit that has a removable seed box to easily discard or save left over seed.
• Look for a seed box with a clear lid so you can see when they you are running out of seed in the hopper and can avoid dry walking.

2) Bearings: The main blade shaft is the primary moving part on a seeder and will ultimately put strain on the bearings that are on either side of the shaft. Greasable cast iron bearings last longer, offer less down time, and require little maintenance.

3) Versatility: Look for a seeder that is versatile for additional turf renovation applications. Some units can be converted from a seeder, to a vertical cutter or dethatcher in minutes. Two examples are shown below:

Make the most of your renovation efforts by using
an overseeder and dethatcher combination that overseeds
and dethatches in one pass to save time and money.
This one is made by Ryan® and does 2" seed spacing
allowing for a 1-pass seed application.

Consider a seeder that is versatile for additional turf
renovation applications.
Look for a unit that offers optional blade assemblies for
dethatching and vertical cutting.
The Classen® Dethatcher shown above offers an optional catcher bag.

Dethatching

Thatch build up significantly reduces water and fertilizer absorption, causing grass plants to become weaker and lawns to become thin. Excessive thatch can eventually cause bare spots in the lawn and can also cause a lawn to be more susceptible to diseases. Removing excessive thatch is essential for healthy green turf.

For areas less than 2000 square feet, use a lawn rake and elbow grease if the thatch is not very deep. Larger areas with more thatch will require a power lawn dethatcher.
These machines use numerous vertically aligned blades or springs that cut into the soil surface and can be adjusted to fit multiple types of grasses and conditions. Use crossing patterns to achieve the best results.

If you rent a lawn dethatcher, ask them to calibrate the lawn dethatcher based on the type of grass in your area and the conditions of your turf. You may also rent or purchase a power rake to dethatch. Power rakes do an excellent job of dethatching as well as breaking up aeration cores and ground preparation.

Classen® Turf Rakes are versatile and portable dethatchers. Folding handles make these turf rakes easy to transport.

Ryan® Ren-O-Thin Power Rake.
Use to rake, dethatch turf or break up aeration cores.

Aeration

Technically speaking, aeration is the naturally occurring process of air exchange between the soil and its surrounding atmosphere. Aeration "opens up" the turf, and allows air, water, and nutrients to more easily reach the roots of your grass plants.
Practically speaking, aeration is the process of mechanically removing small plugs of thatch and soil from the lawn to improve natural soil aeration.
The type of aeration equipment can determine how effective the treatment will be. In general, turf responds best when core holes are close and deep. Equipment with hollow tines removes soil cores. Equipment with open tines divots the soil surface.
Aeration equipment also varies in tine size up to 3/4 inch diameter and in depth of penetration up to 4 inches, depending on the manufacturer’s specifications.

Aeration equipment comes in all types and sizes.

The best time to aerate depends on the type of turf. Aerate cool season turfgrass, such as Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass, in both spring and fall. In spring, aerate between March and May. Perform fall aeration between August and November.
Aeration before or at the time of late season fertilization enhances root growth and improves spring green-up and growth. Warm season turfgrass, such as zoysia grass and Bermuda grass should be aerated in mid-spring to summer. Avoid aerating when warm season grasses are dormant – it may encourage weed competition. In addition, avoid aerating warm season grasses during spring greenup, and not until after the first spring mowing.

Conclusions

Turf renovation involves a variety of processes. Special machinery designed to work with your particular turf conditions helps ensure optimal results. Choosing machinery to meet your needs is easy due to the many available options. Whichever machines you choose, remember that proper care leads to healthy, full, and beautiful turf.