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See the earth move

See the earth move
You will literally see the earth move in the new Terrain Aeration video which demonstrates how one metre depth aeration relieves compaction, waterlogging and panning. The benefits for sports pitches, bowling greens, golf courses, around trees, parks and gardens are exceptional, simultaneously aerating for good drainage and allowing air to get to grass roots to promote and maintain a healthy sward. The company's Terralift fleet is working throughout the UK providing long-term solutions while allowing immediate play on treated surfaces. So how does it work?

The Terralift machine uses a JCB road breaker gun to hydraulically hammer the probe 1 1/2" diameter into the soil before it releases a blast of compressed air to fracture and fissure the soil. It's at this point you literally see the earth move, undulating with the blast and then settling as if nothing had occurred. But beneath the surface the effect is one of de-compacting the soil, opening up the panning and allowing air to reach the roots of the grass or trees. On the tail end of the air blast, dried milled seaweed is incorporated which sticks to the walls of the fractures and over a period of time, swells and contracts with the moisture content in the soil.

This process helps to keep the fractures open. The probe is removed, the machine moves forward and the process repeated using two metre centre spacings on a staggered grid pattern. The probe holes are then backfilled with aggregate to provide a semi long-term aeration/ventilation shaft allowing air and water to percolate into the fissures. The treatment can be applied across large areas of sports turf, bowling and golf greens usually in a day or so without the need to suspend play other than on the day the work is being done. The result is long term relief from compaction and associated waterlogging, giving the grass or trees the aeration they need at the roots to promote healthy growth. The video of the Terralift at work can be seen at https://youtu.be/Dq7e8Ua6-gk