Is mowing necessary prior to core aeration?
The heavy weight of most core aeration machines makes the grass height unimportant since the hollow tines will push through just about any length of grass. Most mowing heights aren’t set low enough for the blade to contact the soil cores, so that isn’t usually an issue either. However, it is important that lawn soil isn’t too dry since hard, dry ground will affect the depth of tine penetration. It’s also undesirable to aerate soggy ground. Since soil cores should be left on the lawn surface, the only reason to mow in advance of aeration would be to give yourself another week before having to mow again, since rainfall can create a muddy condition where cores might want to stick to your lawnmower’s wheels.
