Anyone ever use a lawn roller?

[lutesk]

My backyard beats me to death when mowing and I was wondering if rolling it would help? I've done some searching and a lot of people say it's a waste of time.

Any opinions?



Thanks.

[diftw]

I use one and it really helps. Make sure you use it when your lawn is soft and damp. Those who use one and say it doesn't work probably roll their lawn when the ground is hard and dry.

[lutesk]

I use one and it really helps. Make sure you use it when your lawn is soft and damp. Those who use one and say it doesn't work probably roll their lawn when the ground is hard and dry.

Thanks. After 10" of snow last weekend a supposedly rain Friday it should be soft enough to use this weekend.

Did you need to aerate after rolling yours?

Thanks again.

[flyingpylon]

I'm certainly no lawn expert, but I've read that lawn rolling is actually bad for your lawn. You should be trying to increase the amount of oxygen available to your lawn, and rolling it compresses the soil, resulting in less oxygen. The proper way to smooth out bumps, etc. is top dressing, which unfortunately can take some time to get right (since you can only add a little topsoil at a time without smothering the grass). But again, I'm no expert.

[lutesk]

I'm certainly no lawn expert, but I've read that lawn rolling is actually bad for your lawn. You should be trying to increase the amount of oxygen available to your lawn, and rolling it compresses the soil, resulting in less oxygen. The proper way to smooth out bumps, etc. is top dressing, which unfortunately can take some time to get right (since you can only add a little topsoil at a time without smothering the grass). But again, I'm no expert.

I've read the same thing and that's why I was asking about aerating afterwards.

Thanks.

[Indy500fanatic]

I've read the same thing and that's why I was asking about aerating afterwards.

Thanks.

Aerating is a good thing...when I was doing landscaping and lawn fertilization, we had a lawn tractor pulling the aerator and we had a roller right behind it...that way it flattens the soil and also mashes the 'plugs' down.
Kill 2 birds with one stone!
We always did the aeration/rolling when the ground was very soft but not mushy.
My Dads lawn was in fairly poor shape and with just one rolling/areation, it made a huge difference.
Then as soon as your done with that , the pre-emergent fertilizer goes down to help with weed control.

Hope this helps.

[Truth Detector]

DON'T DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rolling your lawn will compact the soil and
* deny air to most grass
* cause water to run off rather than soak through to the roots
* the runoff will wash fertilizer away with it

Triple Whammy!!

[turnrightgoleft]

Run lower air pressure in your lawn mower, down to where the tires are pretty squishy.

[crispy]

The experts have spoken:

Rolling
Rolling is not considered a necessary turf maintenance practice. Heavy rolling of saturated or clay soils in spring will cause soil compaction and increase soil moisture stress the following summer. This is why rolling is generally not recommended by turf specialists. However, rollers do have some usefulness in turf. Light rolling is effective immediately following seeding to insure good seed-soil contact. Rolling can also insure good sod-soil contact after sodding. Rolling may also help in other isolated occurrences such as severe mole damage or frost heaving. Rolling should never be used to correct surface undulations caused by improper grading. Water-filled rollers are usually available from rental agencies.

http://www.agry.purdue.edu/turf/pubs/ay8.htm

If you can't trust a Boiler, who can you trust?

[Roadrage]

Aerating is a good thing...when I was doing landscaping and lawn fertilization, we had a lawn tractor pulling the aerator and we had a roller right behind it...that way it flattens the soil and also mashes the 'plugs' down.
Kill 2 birds with one stone!
We always did the aeration/rolling when the ground was very soft but not mushy.
My Dads lawn was in fairly poor shape and with just one rolling/areation, it made a huge difference.
Then as soon as your done with that , the pre-emergent fertilizer goes down to help with weed control.

Hope this helps.

I have a pair of aerator sandals I wear so I can stomp around my yard like Gene Simmons. It definitely helps the grass!

[Indy500fanatic]

I was licensed by the state of wisconsin....
Some of the facts given here are not correct. Sorry guys but I had to study this stuff. ( the state licensing book was almost 750 pages)
1. Grass roots arent all in the soil. Part healthy grass and you'll see part of the root structure is on the surface of the soil. And the rest is just under the soil.
2. Aeration is a misleading term. It does not add air to the soil. What it does is punch a hole into the aforementioned roots and were the 'damaged' area is, it grows new blades of grass.
3. Any 'systemic' fertilizer ( which they all are) enters the grass through the blades and roots..24 hours after application , its done its job. Thats why they tell you dont fert within 24 hours of rain.
4. All you should ever roll for, is frost heaving. If the pitch wasnt correct to begin with, rolling will do nothing to correct it. The sod needs to all come off and it'll need to be graded correctly then reseeded/sodded.
5. As stated, any swales ( low areas) need to be addressed by adding soil.
Now over rolling will do damage but rolling once every 3-4 years will do NO harm.
( most of the clients that we had were multi million dollar homes in and around Mequon)
And every one of those places should have been in better homes and gardens because they were PERFECT!

[Indy500fanatic]

I have a pair of aerator sandals I wear so I can stomp around my yard like Gene Simmons. It definitely helps the grass!

Nice LOL

[TM1511]

I was thinking about rolling also. I live in new construction and it was sodded last May and it has lots of bumps in it. I was thinking of just rolling the sodded area to get it smoother.

[Truth Detector]

I was thinking about rolling also. I live in new construction and it was sodded last May and it has lots of bumps in it. I was thinking of just rolling the sodded area to get it smoother.

Aerate it.

[Truth Detector]

rolling once every 3-4 years will do NO harm.

I don't care what your background is...that's bad advice.