[randomdata]

Tiling is defined as "preparing and cultivating the land". Cultivation is defined as "breaking up the soil in preparation for sowing or planting". Aeration will absolutely break up the soil. That's kind of the whole reason for doing it. It is cultivation, and therefore associated with tiling.

Aeration is not by the same mechanical process as the tool known as a cultivator, if that's what you were thinking of, but that specific tool is not what tiling/cultivation refers to specifically.

[yareal]

Tilling, in gardening, usually refers to lifting spadefuls of soil up and out of the ground, turning them over and breaking up the clumps. It's like a kitchen aid stand mixer on your soil.

Aeration with a broad fork doesn't lift the soil out of the ground and definitely doesn't break it up and redistribute it. It just creates a few pockets of stretched space by inserting a fork and wiggling a bit. Yes, small pockets are disturbed by the fork but mostly the soil stays as it was.

[randomdata]

> Tilling, in gardening, usually refers to lifting spadefuls of soil up and out of the ground, turning them over and breaking up the clumps.

I expect you mean that lifting spadefuls of soil up and out of the ground is usually referred to as tiling, rather than the other way around. Which stands to reason as that is perfectly consistent with the dictionary defection.

> Aeration with a broad fork doesn't lift the soil out of the ground and definitely doesn't break it up

Aeration does not lift the soil, but it absolutely breaks it. That is why one would consider practicing aeration – to break up soil compaction that may be present. Cultivation, and therefore tiling, says nothing about lifting or redistribution, only breaking. Aeration is also tiling if done for the sake of ground preparation.

[yareal]

Have you use a broad fork? It's like 4-6 blades spread across ~4 feet. The mechanism of action is totally different, and no, it does not break up the soil in the same way tilling with a spade or rototiller does.

If you are here only to argue semantic and prescriptivist use of language, you can stop responding. I'm not interested. You might be right according to some dictionary definition of these terms. In practical use by gardeners, however, these two techniques have different names and achieve different goals and only one is called tilling.

[fuzztester]

>Have you use a broad fork? It's like 4-6 blades spread across ~4 feet. The mechanism of action is totally different, and no, it does not break up the soil in the same way tilling with a spade or rototiller does.

Yes. E.g.:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Martin_Fortier

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadfork

https://www.en.jeanmartinfortier.com/

[yareal]

Yep, that's the one.

[randomdata]

> Have you use a broad fork?

Ha, no. I have heavy equipment, including a no-till drill for my no-till application needs.

I assume this means you have, though. Why have you used it if not for tillage?

[yareal]

Breaking up soil into large, mostly intact chunks, without turning it over, aeration. See the links above from the peer poster.

[randomdata]

Right, so tillage.

Aeration is not conventional tillage. Conventional tillage sees soil lifted and mixed as described earlier. A lazy speaker may leave out "conventional" in casual conversation about the mechanical practice where it is understood by context. Such context was not found here, but is that, perhaps, the source of your confusion?