Lawncare Users Question Core Aeration Cleanup
22 posts in the last 60 days, all from r/lawncare.
“I do this on the edges and corners were the equipment cant get very well or along cable lines, its a form of aeration. If your paying for it, unless there some risk of using equipment should be pulling cores like others are saying.”
“Here’s what I would do: Aerate tomorrow. Mulch right after you aerate to break down the plugs. 🌧️ Now you have a nice and moist seed bed to put your new seed down on (this is actually super helpful for new seed) Seed the following day, and throw down some peat moss. Added…”
“I love in Maryland. My lawn care guy aerated Monday and his other crew didn’t know and did it again today on Thursday. What should I expect and what can I do?”
Users are seeking advice on whether to rake up core aeration plugs or leave them for natural reabsorption.
SOURCES (60)
“Here’s what I would do: Aerate tomorrow. Mulch right after you aerate to break down the plugs. 🌧️ Now you have a nice and moist seed bed to put your new seed down on (this is actually super helpful for new seed) Seed the following…”
“I love in Maryland. My lawn care guy aerated Monday and his other crew didn’t know and did it again today on Thursday. What should I expect and what can I do? submitted by /u/Individual_Ad_589 [link] [comments]”
“well that is core aeration , you might do deep tine aeration and have no cores , but I get you OP is scarifying with a rake and it kinda looks like one of the rolly tine ones , and since aeration simply refers to introducing oxygen or gas to a material or substance the rake is technically aerating (but not very well ) not what you expect when you are paying for a service for sure , but make sure you choose core aeration in the future.”
“I have less than 800 sq ft and should be doable. Not planning on doing it all at once.”
“I do this on the edges and corners were the equipment cant get very well or along cable lines, its a form of aeration. If your paying for it, unless there some risk of using equipment should be pulling cores like others are saying.”
Had my lawn done last Monday. With rain it's already mostly broken down.
“I've always heard to leave them and they should break down. Should. My in-laws leave their plugs and they never break down. Walking on their lawn feels like walking on a road with random rocks.”
“It looks like mostly hard compacted clay, but i’ve seen where people say to leave them in the yard so they can break down and and to the soil. submitted by /u/Glum_Tumbleweed_3423 [link] [comments]”
“recommend buying your own seed and have them spread it. (just to guarantee your putting down 0 weeds.)”
“I'm having my lawn core aerated this Friday, weather permitting. The company doing it mentioned his machine can drop seed at the same time. I want to over seed either Friday evening or Saturday. I am not planning on top dressing. Do I have the company put down seed, or should I so it myself via broadcast spreader. Do I leave the cores alone, or do I mulch them? Zone 6a, southern Nebraska. submitted by /u/TheMrDetty [link] [comments]”
“Just got someone to aerate our lawn. I was expecting deeper penetration and plugs to be in the yard. Is this normal? Should we get someone else to come out to aerate again? This is our first time doing this. Located in NC. submitted by /u/Consistent_Bus2529 [link] [comments]”
“You can call a few equipment rental companies and see if they have aerators available for DIY. Chances are slim because this is the time to do it, but it's worth a phone call.”
“If you seed just before aeration probably ok. But if it starts germinating then they aerate it’s going to be pretty bad.”
“No. Aside from other benefits, the point of aerate is to create small holes in your lawn where the seed would fall into and for better soil contact.”
“Live in CA, will be doing aeration of my back yard for the first time ever here in a couple weeks. Everything I’m seeing says leave the cores to break down. My soil is fairly heavy clay content so I’m going to overseed with sand and a fescue+KBG blend sold by a local sod farm. Originally I used Rebels and Scott’s blend of seed that, where it took, looks decent but overall the yard is thin and has gaps between bunches of grass. When we moved in back in 2022, I watered the hell out of the front, l”
“If you can afford to do it, I would do it annually. Cleaning up the cores doesn't improve much, imo. It helps if you maintain a really low height. The cores actually help germination when overseeding. They'll cover some of the seed around them when they start to break down. Overseeding every few years is particularly healthy for perennial ryegrass and tall fescue. These types don't spread and over time some plants will die off. Good plant density is needed for tall fescue in particul”
“Just voicing support for those who attempt to clean up after their dog(s) post aeration. (NJ resident, but that doesn’t matter…) submitted by /u/Educational-Paper990 [link] [comments]”
“What I did and the process I took in doing so…. Yesterday 9/7/2026 I mowed my yard down to 2” and bagged it all there was a ton of clippings. After mowing I rented a core aerator from Ace Hardware aerated both east west and north south. Then I spread KBG seed on the 7 dial setting with my Scott’s rotary edgeguard spreader. I then followed the seed with Scott’s starter fertilizer on dial 3.25. After this was all done I watered the seed and fertilizer in at 7min per station. I also ran them this m”
Dear members, How do you guys remove core aeration plugs and scarifier waste from larger lawns? I’ve seen some people using a Bag-a-Nut and others using an EGO or Milwaukee rubber brush…
“Is it necessary/recommended to drag the lawn to break up cores? Have read about this but haven't seen a lot here to indicate that people are breaking up the cores. submitted by /u/BigTeeSlice [link] [comments]”
“I just did my front lawn. Definitely not fun, but doable. Seemed to work fairly well - even better after a heavy rain”
It’s pretty good. Make sure to soak the lawn a few hours before using ..
I've done this with fall cleanup several times before. Works like a charm.
“You're going to finish the first 5 square feet and wonder what the fuck you're doing this for.”
“I got one similar to it, it has 4 holes. It worked, but it took a long time and I was sore af.”
“A hand weed puller tool works great for unclogging. Also in STL and also have the clogging that happens similar to what you said. But my lawn is small enough it isn’t too much work to use this thing and unclog with the weed puller.”
“Those don’t do crap unfortunately. They just push the dirt down or to the sides and not actually pull up anything.”
“I've got one of those, I cut the tines out completely at the top so that I would clear more easily, after that mod it works very well.”
“I’d go for the 2 or 3 prong version over 4 just for the reduced surface area to more easily penetrate the soil. Also, I’d wait for a good rainstorm to soak the ground before you try it out. It’s a lot easier wet than hard pack dry.”
“if your plan is to do a small portion of it yourself, then hire someone to do the rest. This is the right tool, or you could save a few bucks and use a pasta strainer you already own”
“Just remember it's not just about making the holes, but breaking up the dirt by moving the tool back and forth. This also means the holes don't have to be as close as some might chose to do, meaning you can cover twice the ground as someone who put's the hole much closer. It is work, have a go 15-30 minutes a day and you will make progress.”
I had to sharpen the tines to make easier but had a small area.
“Thank you. I did about 5 minutes without these and was like “this ain’t gonna work” and then after adding them did about 2500 sq ft of lawn without jamming once. It was tedious but I found it enjoyable as well.”
“These are meant to spot treat areas of compaction in your lawn. You’ll probably break yourself or the tool before you aerate 2k square feet of lawn.”
“These are good for spot treatments. I had some areas of my lawn with severe compaction and I used one of these (mine has three aerator corers). Made sure I had watered the morning of and it made fairly quick work. I’d never use it to do an entire lawn though.”
“Leave the plugs. They are beneficial. They sort of act like a top dressing when they break down. You might consider doing some dethatching as well.”
“If its a true core aeration, that's great news as long as they didnt break any sprinklers!”
“If you aerate, then dethatch, you can rake up most of the plugs or at least windrow them with the dethatcher.”
“I do two passes (different directions - probably doesn't matter) and leave the plugs. Depending how your yard is, it may be worth dethatching before you aerate.”
“I'm in Westchester New York. Yesterday, I core aerated with a rental machine, tried to level the worst depressions, and seeded after killing off most of the weeds a month ago and dethatching. It rained early this morning and the drainage seems worse now than before. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong or what else I need. Do I just need a ton more soil + compost + sand to change the grade completely? A French drain and if so where? We've always had poor drainage here. The lawn was”
“You should be core areating your Bermuda 3-4 times a summer from June-Sept. But, a good rule of thumb for the basic homeowner is to aerate when the golf course lunches their greens”