Lawn aerator
- Thread starter Tripster
- Start date
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Archie_tect
De Skieven Architek... aka Penfold + Horace
- Location
- Northumberland
Trip, you could get some spikes to attach to your wellies?
https://www.roov.co.uk/household-to...xgbzs6gvawxovsruyjtef0cd-1fhes_qaatl6ealw_wcb
Edit: beat me to it shep!
They work really well!
https://www.roov.co.uk/household-to...xgbzs6gvawxovsruyjtef0cd-1fhes_qaatl6ealw_wcb
Edit: beat me to it shep!
They work really well!
It’s Pukka !! But does it work
Can I ask which you hire and where from ? Im guessing make the holes and then put horticultural sand in ?I hire one every 2 years to get sand in to the soil. Not cheap but a lot less effort with much better results than spikey shoes.
Randomnerd
Bimbleur
- Location
- North Yorkshire
Just go over it with a garden fork pushed deep, and rake in some sharp sand. Good work-out. Wouldn’t be paddling on it if wet though. Defeats the objectI’ve
Darius_Jedburgh
Veteran
Retired (sort of)gardener here.
Forget those spikes on your feet. Useless. You will get tired long before your lawn is finished.
Forget those hand held spikes, garden forks etc. Yes, they do the job but its damded hard work and will take a long time.
You won't/shouldn't need to do this every year.
Best, by far, option is to go to your local tool hire shop. They will have a petrol driven machine. They will deliver. Choose the hollow spikes. Shouldn't cost more than £20 for a morning (unless you are in London where the sky is the limit!).
Machine will pull plugs of soil out of your lawn. Sweep these up and they make excellent loam to use on your garden.
Recommendation is to brush sharp sand into the holes that are made. At this time of year good luck trying to do that. But I seldom bother; I leave the holes for aeration and drainage. The sides knit together quickly and the grass regrows in no time.
You could ask someone like Green Thumb. They will do it for you, but obviously they will want paying.
I always just hire a machine for a morning. If you know anyone locally who wants their lawn doing then that splits the cost.
Manually aerating a lawn? No thank you.
Forget those spikes on your feet. Useless. You will get tired long before your lawn is finished.
Forget those hand held spikes, garden forks etc. Yes, they do the job but its damded hard work and will take a long time.
You won't/shouldn't need to do this every year.
Best, by far, option is to go to your local tool hire shop. They will have a petrol driven machine. They will deliver. Choose the hollow spikes. Shouldn't cost more than £20 for a morning (unless you are in London where the sky is the limit!).
Machine will pull plugs of soil out of your lawn. Sweep these up and they make excellent loam to use on your garden.
Recommendation is to brush sharp sand into the holes that are made. At this time of year good luck trying to do that. But I seldom bother; I leave the holes for aeration and drainage. The sides knit together quickly and the grass regrows in no time.
You could ask someone like Green Thumb. They will do it for you, but obviously they will want paying.
I always just hire a machine for a morning. If you know anyone locally who wants their lawn doing then that splits the cost.
Manually aerating a lawn? No thank you.
PaulSB
Squire
- Location
- Chorley, Lancashire
Can I state the obvious please. Use a fork. Push in vertically to the depth of the fork and then pull the tines out vertically. Don't rock it back and forward though a little wiggle to help loosen is fine.
It's time consuming but cheap and will give a good result. You could also brush sand in to the holes to improve drainage.
Don't do this until your lawn has dried out.
It's time consuming but cheap and will give a good result. You could also brush sand in to the holes to improve drainage.
Don't do this until your lawn has dried out.
Slick
Guru
This one.
https://www.hirestation.co.uk/tool-hire/Landscaping/Lawn-Aerator-Hire/140190/
Not lawn sand as it's far too fine for drainage. I used quite rough washed builders sand but a greenkeeper advised to rotavate tons of rough sand into my lawn and start again. A bit extreme but I wished I just bit the bullet and done it.
Randomnerd
Bimbleur
- Location
- North Yorkshire
Many thanks
I gather the holes close quickly. The lawn is on clay soil and heavily waterlogged. Live on a hill and the garden is stepped down from house, split level house over 4 floors, so getting heavy aerator down steps not easy but doable. Forking is simpler but not working. Also have flocks of starlings feeding on crane fly larvae in soil
Thanks for the advice, very much appreciated
BoldonLad
Not part of the Elite
- Location
- South Tyneside
It depends on the size of your lawn.
We have a two small (approx 6m*2m) at back of house, I can aerate those with a hollow tine fork, but, our front lawn is approx 7m * 8m, I have done it with a hollow tine fork, but, it is really tedious and hard work.
I have this type of thing, cheap, but, not really unto the task for a large lawn. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lawn-Gra...578482&hash=item447043569d:g:-VsAAOSwtBZf1-Of
We have a two small (approx 6m*2m) at back of house, I can aerate those with a hollow tine fork, but, our front lawn is approx 7m * 8m, I have done it with a hollow tine fork, but, it is really tedious and hard work.
I have this type of thing, cheap, but, not really unto the task for a large lawn. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lawn-Gra...578482&hash=item447043569d:g:-VsAAOSwtBZf1-Of
