Reddit reviews Liquid Aerating Soil Loosener- Aerator Soil Conditioner- No Mechanical or Core Aeration- Simple Lawn Solutions- Any Grass Type, All Season- Great for Compact Soils, Standing Water, Poor Drainage.

Clover is really good in clay soil and is a cheap alternative. It stays green and is practically maintenance free.

If you want to put down grass I suggest you break up some of that clay soil first with something like this. I've used in on my lawn and it definitely makes a difference.

Take a look at liquid aerator. It's basically a surfactant that allows water to penetrate the soil easier. Ryan Knorr did a good video on and and you can buy it for $30 bucks on Amazon.

Ryan Knorr- Does liquid aerator really work?

Amazon- Liquid Aerator

Assuming you this when you say SLS... and that's what I was planning on using.

This is the liquid aeration stuff I was talking about. https://www.amazon.com/Conditioner-Mechanical-Simple-Lawn-Solutions/dp/B071VWCRBD From what I've seen people really like it. I think it works best after long-term usage. I've used it a couple of times, along with my own concoctions that I've made mixed with humic acid and dish soap (look up the benefits of surfactants if you want to learn more about that) but basically it's the idea that you are breaking water surface tension on your soil allowing better absorption of chemicals, nutrients, and water. Combined with humic, fulvic, and/or sea kelp mixes it "conditions" your soil. If you really want to go down the rabbit hole on that topic check out the Youtube channel Lawncology he's like a soil expert. But the TL;DR is this may or may not replace mechanical aeration depending on how bad your soil is but it should improve the soil condition over time.

Milorganite can be applied with a the same spreader but at different settings if you want the full application rate. If you intend on applying both ferts at the same time you can do that but you may only be putting down about half the recommended rate of Milorganite at a time, which is still beneficial just not as much nitrogen going down which you may not even need since the Scotts has that. Personally I would apply them separately because the Scott's broadcast spreader you will want to drop Milorganite down at about a setting of 6.5 if I remember correctly, and the Scott's fert is probably around a 4.

Since you asked what I use, like I said I put down Milorganite twice a year, but around this time of year I like to really push my lawn hard since this is the best time for growth and spreading and making it healthy. I really like Lesco fertilizers. https://www.homedepot.com/p/LESCO-50-lbs-24-0-11-No-Phos-Fertilizer-080258/202310769 This one is excellent. It has iron in it just like Milorganite so you still get that dark emerald green color with it. Otherwise check out the Purely Organics 10-0-2 I've been meaning to try that one as well it looks like a winner.

EDIT: I did a video applying the Lesco fert (slightly different than the 24-0-11 in this video I applied an 18-24-12) but same procedure https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeuX0wSK6CA and here is a video I did a while back applying Milorganite with the Scott's spreader https://youtu.be/ov7qvHQyIEk maybe that should help give you an idea!

What's the warning for not using a month before or after seeding about then? https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071VWCRBD

Soil aeration will probably help, I would then get some more grass seed and sprinkle then water in missing patches. If you don't have a means to aerate the ground mechanically, they make liquid soil aerator that you can snag on Amazon or some supply stores like Rural King, maybe some big box stores.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VWCRBD/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_i_M1rXDb0NCZ2C7

It looks like you got Bermudagrass? If so it will spread some on its own but overseeding seems to help IMHO. I usually have to do that at least once in areas where a lawn has been neglected or just new planted areas.

Liquid Aeration on Amazon


Is this just as good as Air8? I like I can get it on Amazon. Also, would you recommend I put down a granular pre-emergent right now? I need to start getting a hold on the thousands of weeds as well. Is this something I should just go get from Home Depot or Tractor Supply?

Thanks! I also found this on Amazon! Let me know your thoughts:

Liquid Aerating Soil Loosener- Aerator Soil Conditioner- No Mechanical or Core Aeration- Simple Lawn Solutions- Any Grass Type, All Season- Great for Compact Soils, Standing Water, Poor Drainage. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VWCRBD/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_-uCZCbSSV9DPC

You can try liquid aerator. I've never used it but the reviews are positive.

https://www.amazon.com/Conditioner-Mechanical-Simple-Lawn-Solutions/dp/B071VWCRBD/

Would it be better to use something like this

Liquid Aerating Soil Loosener- Aerator Soil Conditioner- No Mechanical or Core Aeration- Simple Lawn Solutions- Any Grass Type, All Season- Great for Compact Soils, Standing Water, Poor Drainage. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VWCRBD/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_RtpmDb1XPE785


Before I do humic and kelp mix?

I would get the below, should make it way easier and have some left over - again, judging the size of the lawn by the picture. Although you might buy only 32oz of a liquid product - make sure to check the label/bag rate application as this will tell you if you are buying a concentrate or a diluted product. Concentrate will serve you best in terms of cost/performance for multiple applications but you might not want or might not be able to store excess chemicals - decide which method is best for you but I would stick with liquid applications because your yard is on the smaller side and you wont have to worry about storing heavy bags of product. I use liquid on the front of my lawn because thats my $10,000 view and granular on my side and rear lawn so that I can spread my costs and also be efficient with my time since I have a wife and kid haha.

1. Sprayer (This comes with the humic acid I talk about in #3 but the sprayer, although cheap looking, is quite good to keep for future liquid application)
   
   https://smile.amazon.com/Simple-Lawn-Solutions-Concentrated-Fertilizer/dp/B01CKK1CPO/ref=sr_1_18?keywords=hose+end+sprayer&qid=1566905833&s=gateway&sr=8-18
   
   

2. Aeration liquid:
   
   https://smile.amazon.com/Conditioner-Mechanical-Simple-Lawn-Solutions/dp/B071VWCRBD/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=liquid+aeration&qid=1566905660&s=gateway&sr=8-3
   
   ​
   
   
3. Humic Acid (Apply this annually - this makes it so that the fertilizer or any lawn additives you put on the lawn can uptake the nutrients easier, wait until your lawn has become established around 6-8 weeks - this one also adds seaweed which is dense in micronutrients (consider it the equivalent of a multivitamin).
   
   https://smile.amazon.com/Seaweed-Fulvic-Blend-Organic-Liquid/dp/B07QPB5H63/ref=sr_1_12?keywords=liquid%2Baeration&qid=1566905660&s=gateway&sr=8-12&th=1
   
   Some really good youtube references is to watch: The Lawn Care Nut, Ryan Knorr (He does a few complete overhauls - so this would probably be your best bet), GCI Turf Academy (Pete is my favorite), and/or The Pest and Lawn Ginja (He has a smaller yard so might also be a good reference)
   
   Here is an example video, I started following this guy because he has a bigger yard: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c54WSOI-MMc
   
   (ignore where he said don't restart your lawn... because you have no lawn haha - otherwise its good)
   
   Note: Your number one concern before all of these additives is to make sure the grass holds and establishes. So spend your CAD $ on good grass seed (Turf Type Tall Fescue is my favorite for my area but check with U of T for recommended blends for your area) and a good price for a 50 lb bag of seed is in/around $150 US - you will likely need 8-10 lbs per 1K square feet for new seeding - other grass types will vary in terms of application rate but it will be on the bag, good starter fertilizer (key word "starter" - regular fertilizer could burn your new grass), and a top dressing to hold the grass seed and keep birds/wind at bay (Peat moss is great but at $10 for 3 cubic feet here in the US it could add up fast - so again U of T soil science center is a great reference to refer to on cost effective ways to seed a new lawn)

What are your controller settings for the 3X week watering? You probably need to enable the "soak and cycle" feature on your controller. Most people setup a zone to run for X minutes and then move on. The problem is, a lot of soils can only hold so much water, so anything after that is runoff. What this feature does is break your total watering time up into cycles. So instead of watering zone 1 for 10 minutes, it waters zone 1 for 1 minute 10 times with a 15-20 minute gap. This allows the water to soak in and make each cycle more effective.

Since you have a slope, the problem is made even worse as the water can't sit on top and wait to soak in.

You may also want to look at putting an application of this down too. It will help break up the soil and allow the water to soak in more "easily".
https://www.amazon.com/Conditioner-Mechanical-Simple-Lawn-Solutions/dp/B071VWCRBD