You have probably seen people pushing or towing a lawn roller over their lawn. But do you know why they are doing it and how they figured out when to do it? Well, there are actually quite a few reasons you might want to roll your lawn, and there is definitely a good time to do it. Let’s take a look.
When Should You Use a Lawn Roller? (The Short Answer)
Lawn rollers can be used at different stages of a lawn’s life to achieve a successful, healthy, and flat lawn. Pre-planting, rollers can be used as a method of ground preparation. Post-planting, lawn rollers can help flatten sod, push seeds into the ground, or maintain and resolve heave and settling in existing lawns created by situations such as freezing and pests.
8 Signs that Indicate Rolling Your Lawn is Necessary
So, there are a few different times when you might want to grab a lawn roller. Let’s go over what these are and see if they could help you and your property.
Pre- Planting Rolling
If you are considering installing a new lawn, then it’s a perfect time to carry out some ground preparation. Getting rid of any humps and bumps will really help prevent future problems. Also, pre-planting rolling can help reduce the need for any topdressing that you might need to do late.
Post-Planting Rolling
If you have ever had new sod installed, then you know that it can be very bumpy, especially once you start mowing. It’s very difficult to get your sod pieces to fit together perfectly without creating humps and bumps.
So, once your sod is installed, make sure that you run over it with a roller to help flatten it out. Also, if you are seeding a lawn, then a roller can really come in handy. A lot of the time, many of the seeds won’t be in contact with the soil in the right way. This makes germination a much harder and slower task. So, give the seeds a hand and roll them into the soil.
Maintenance Rolling
Once your lawn becomes established, you’re still going to need to grab a roller from time to time. Here are some of the different reasons you might need to flatten out your lawn.
- Soil Heave
- Freeze Heave & Settling
- Drought Conditions Settling
- Water Erosion
- Lawn Weeds
- Pest & Rodents
Soil Heave
Soil Heave happens when the soil gets wet, expands, and contracts while it dries out. In heavy clay soil areas, this can be a real problem. This is why you might see a crack in a building as the ground naturally moves. To account for these movements, contractors use specific building techniques. But for the lawn, you use a roller.
Another cause of soil heave is the reduction of vegetation. For example, if you remove a tree from the ground, then you’ll need to replace it with another plant. This is to compensate for the water usage. If you don’t use the water, then the ground will heave more frequently.
Freeze Heave & Settling
Probably the biggest reason you’ll need to use a roller every year is because of freeze heave and settling. This happens when the ground freezes, causing the moisture to expand and then settle once the moisture thaws.
How cold your soil gets and how moist your lawn gets will affect how bad the heave and thaw will be. A lawn that was perfectly flat during the fall can be a bumpy mess in the spring if you get winter freezing and snow.
Drought Conditions Settling
Deciding when to use a lawn roller is for more than just cold conditions. It’s also for very hot conditions. When the soil dries out, it contracts and shrinks. If you have ever seen bare dirt full of cracks in the summer heat, then you know what I mean.
As soon as the rains come, these cracks wash in and disappear. Unfortunately, this process erodes your lawn’s soil and leaves you with a bumpy lawn.
Water Erosion
Next on the list for when to use a lawn roller is water erosion. This is when water washes away soil. For example, I have a section of lawn down the side of my home, which gets most of the water from my roof.
So, by the end of summer, I have a washed-out area and a pile of dirt at the bottom of a slope. To get this section of lawn back in shape, I have to replace the dirt and flatten it out.
Lawn Weeds
Weeds like crabgrass and dandelions not only make a mess of your lawn but also make a mess of your soil. These weeds, like many other weeds, have an extensive root system. So once you take care of the weed, you end up with a hole where the root system used to be. This is another reason you might need to get the roller out more than just once.
Pest & Rodents
Critters in your yard are definitely going to cause an issue and disrupt your lawn. If you are one of the unfortunate ones with gophers or moles in your yard, then you’re familiar with how bumpy your lawn can get. But other pests like grubs and ants can create a problem by digging homes under your lawn. The result is holes or dips in your lawn, which will need to either be rolled out or top-dressed away.
When is the Best Time to Roll Your Lawn? (Is There One)
When should you use a lawn roller? Well, the only time that rolling is really going to work is when the soil is moist. If you have tried to use a roller on a dry lawn, then you know it doesn’t do much.
So, rolling after irrigating or a bit of rain will soften the ground enough so the roller can flatten your lawn. But I suggest you avoid using a lawn roller when the ground is very wet unless you want to create some big tire ruts in your lawn. So, here are my recommendations.
When is the Best Time to Roll Your Lawn
- Pre-Planting Rolling – Anytime
- Post-Planting Rolling – Anytime
- Maintenance Rolling – Spring, actively growing lawn
What to do After Lawn Rolling
If you were to ask some people, when should you roll your lawn? They will say never. This is because lawn rolling compacts your soil, which isn’t good for your lawn. So, what should you do? Be prepared to aerate your lawn soon after you roll, or use a top-dressing method instead of rolling.
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