Question
Ronald,

I am going to aerate my rye/blue lawn this September. The main reasons are the soil is compacted and we had a pretty good mole problem this past spring. My plans are to aerate, 2 passes. Re seed, spread about a 1/4" of compost over lawn...and lightly rake. Does this sound about right? I am hoping this levels out some of the lumpiness from the moles...any suggestions. I was thinking of raking the plugs up and mixing in some sand to help level? I was also going to adjust the ph by mixing in some sulfur into the compost....good/bad time to do that? Is it necessary to mow the lawn really really short before?

Any comments or tips welcome

thanks
Barn

Answer
I am struggling to reconcile a mole problem in a compacted soil environment. Are you sure you need to aerate or merely level the ground? I take it that the application of sulfur is based upon soil analysis recommendations. I advise caution in spreading the compost. You do not want to bury the grass seed too deeply.