Equipment Used on Soil Improvement Methods

Aerators

• To sustainably grow a vibrant lawn, the soil must be frequently aerated. The equipment used to aerate the soil can be a small walk-behind machine that takes out plugs of soil. The removal of these plugs increases the surface area of the soil and punches through shallow surface compaction. Compaction can occur from foot traffic. Dense layers of grass roots can also benefit from the aeration of the soil. There are also aerator attachments for small tractors to tend larger areas.

Tiling

• To prepare a soil for building or growing, it is often necessary to install a drainage system in the ground. Putting a drainage system in the soil of a field is called "tiling." Tiling is done using trenching equipment. Some specialized trenchers can dig the trench, place the drainage tube in the ground and cover it back up with soil all in one pass. The tubing used to tile farm ground can be about 5 inches in diameter. Tiling can also be done to improve the soil around buildings so that they do not flood.

Compactors

• Building on deep soil often requires that it be compacted to support the structure. The soil underneath roads also must be compacted. Compacting the soil makes it denser. By increasing the density of the soil, it becomes more stable and can support more weight. A dense soil is also less likely to erode, since it is less permeable by water. Some compaction equipment consists of huge steamrollers with studded metal rollers. Other soil compaction equipment is hand operated, such as vibrators. The size of the equipment depends on the scale of the project.

Tillers and Plows

• To keep a soil fertile for agriculture, it may often need to be improved by plowing or tilling it. Tilling is usually down on smaller amounts of land. The equipment used for tilling can be a walk-behind machine with spinning arms that mix the surface layers of the soil. There are also tilling attachments for tractors intended for larger-scale projects. Plows have been used for thousands of years to flip the rich surface layer of the soil. By plowing the soil, the nutrients accumulated from decayed plant matter is placed in the soil where it is more accessible to plant roots. Plowing, like tilling, reduces the density of the soil, which makes it easier for seeds to germinate.