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Break up hard dirt in your yard with popular methods such as core aeration or manual aeration with a spade, mini excavator, or pitchfork. You can also alter your soil to keep it from compacting in the future. Adding compost, groundcover plants, or aeration granules—preferably made of organic materials—can also soften your ground and encourage water saturation.

Many factors can cause your yard to have lawn depressions. Here are the most common reasons: 

• Heavy rainfall 

• Wild animals such as moles, voles, and groundhogs that burrow and tunnel

• Poor drainage

• Buried items such as pipes that break down

• Decaying tree roots or stumps

• Soil that has compacted

• Improper mowing techniques

• Driving heavy equipment and vehicles through the yard

Try the tool test first. A screwdriver or a similarly long, thin tool will work best, as spades and shovels are too big. If something still seems off despite the screwdriver smoothly going into the soil, look for other signs that you need aeration, like thinning grass, discolored areas, and puddles forming on your lawn after light rain. This indicates poor drainage because of too many areas being compacted.

Before starting any digging project, you must call 811, the national “call before you dig” hotline. After calling, a representative will come out to your property to mark the places where any utility wires or pipes run below the ground so that you can edge or dig trenches safely. You are liable for any damage to utilities and other systems beneath the ground on your property, and you could be seriously injured if you accidentally run into wires or utility lines.