Soil aeration: by loosening the soil gently with a chopstick, you’ll break up the dry clumps of soil that naturally develop as the roots repeatedly absorb moisture, which mimics the action of worms and insects burrowing in the soil. Can it hurt the roots? Yes – it’s possible to break a few roots here and there but dry clumps of soil also hurt roots by isolating them from moisture and oxygen, suffocating them until they die off. Aerate gently.
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Probing into the soil also helps you assess soil dryness, although simply lifting a pot will also tell you how much moisture is in the soil.
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What about just using soil amendments that improve drainage/aeration? While this can prevent the dry clumps, you will also be watering on an annoyingly frequent basis as your planting medium will not hold as much water.
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How often to aerate? I’m just looking at the soil and if it seems too compacted, then I’ll aerate. You will need to learn to assess soil compaction just like how you learned to assess soil dryness (because you’re not watering blindly by a schedule…right?)
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Plant: Fittonia (Nerve Plant)
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