Can I roll my lawn?

Question:I have a mature lawn of soft, slender grass that I can't positively identify. I'm thinking it propogates via rhizomes, because the soil is very lumpy. In northern Illinois, with the rich black loam, there's no other reason for the soil to be so lumpy.

It's unpleasant to walk on and bounces my manual reel mower all over the place. I'd like to roll it flat, but I don't want to compact the soil to the point where it's less fertile. Can I roll it without harming it?

Any advice from experienced lawnologists would be much appreciated.

Answers:
Yes, you can roll your lawn. However, the rolling days are passed until this fall, around October or November around where you live and after lots of rain is most effective. . After the freeze of winter, like April or May, its too late to roll.

Then in the winter, a freeze and thaw uncompacts the earth and produces those many frost cracks and the grass will grow fine in then.

Best way is to roll with a pull along after a grarden tractor because those things are heavy. But you can also use a handle type pull type that you can pull along too.

You can rent a roller for about $15 and take home, fill with water thru a hose and procede to roll away. It will flatten your lawn.

I live on north side of Chicago and I rolled my lawn flat about 5 years ago and it is not a bit bumpy after rolling.

A thin lawn can be 'overseeded' in early February, the seeds will get into those frost cracks and germinate about March, then grow quite well into the summer if properly watered. Or you can chose y our method of just keep fertilizing and watering to grow in the spots thru rhizomes or root movement.