Improve bad soil?
My 1/2 acre property has a 15-year old lawn but due to poor soil it has never thrived. The soil is essentially clay (yellow) that is like cement when dry and compacts horribly.
My idea to improve: Get a core aerator and aerate the devil out of it (after some rain to get the ground “soft”) and then spread something over it that would fill in the core holes with something grass might like to grow in. My question: what is the something to spread (soil, compost, vermiculite, etc…?) and will this idea work?
I’ve sent soil samples to our state’s ag extension for chemical analysis so I’ll at least know ph, etc…for how much lime NPK to apply.
Take a soil sample and send it to the county, state or other organization for any analysis of what the soil needs in the way of nutrients.
Your idea of going with a “plug” aeration is good to loosen up the soil and allow it to absorb what nutrients are necessary is another step.
Put the two together and you are on the road to cutting thick grass.
