The accompanying picture makes you think of a pleasant, peaceful stroll on a crisp autumn day by a beautiful pond soaking in all the smells and sounds of nature.
However, that picture is not of a pond. It is a park that has highly compacted soil. The water should not be there, and if it is left like it is the grass that is submerged will in the very least be damaged if not killed.
If an area lacks the proper amount of topsoil leaving only the subsoil, then compaction can happen rather quickly.
Clay soils typically have less organic matter, and become hardened and compacted when dry. In turn, compaction can happen occur simply by walking on wet soil.
Significant compaction will occur with excessive rainfall, grazing livestock, driving on your yard, or continuous heavy foot traffic. When any of these instances occur, soil particles are pressed together and reduces the space between them to allow for nutrients, air, or water to flow. The result is then poor producing areas, disease, and water retention. There are solutions to compaction that range from fairly simple to fairly intensive.
The first step when you notice a compacted area is to determine if you are contributing to the compaction (i.e., driving in your yard, moving heavy machinery, etc.). If you are able to figure that out, then stop doing that.
Secondly, aeration may be required. Aerating or coring removes a plug of soil from the compacted area that will allow water, nutrients, and air to move into the soil. This practice can be performed every 3-4 years, but in extreme cases it should be performed more often.
Another solution would be to add organic matter to the soil. Not only will this benefit the properties of the soil, but it can improve drainage as well. If you have compacted soils and varying topography, then you should consider having the area regraded if the issue is extensive. By grading the soil rainfall can be diverted to a better location and the soil can be somewhat cultivated and break up the compacted area. This would be a solution if the area was fairly large, and it is certainly the more expensive option listed.
Two things to keep in mind is that the soil did not become compacted overnight, and the process for fixing it probably will not occur overnight either. The second thing to keep in mind is that roots do not grow well or spread in compacted soils, and most plants do not do well being submerged in water for extended periods of time. So compaction has the propensity to not only create an unwanted pond in your lawn or property, but can damage or kill the plant life. Therefore, keep a watch out to see if you have puddles or ponds where you shouldn’t, make a habit to add in organic material to your soils when you can, look at your plants to see if they are in decline, and if you have any questions about compaction or other agriculture related topics contact the Jones County Extension office at 478-986-3958 or email brennan4@uga. edu.
