Best Tips on How to Dethatch a Lawn
Thatch is a combination of living and dead materials that forms an organic mulch. It is located between the soil surface and green grass blades.
Organic matters such as mulched leaves and grass clippings break down quickly. However, other materials such as twigs and stems take a longer time to decompose. When the build-up outpaces the breakdown, then the thatch layer in your lawn thickens.
Before, not many homeowners were aware of this problem. However, there has been a spike in online searches about dethatching and other related information since 2019. As a result, an increasing number of lawn owners include dethatching as a part of their regular lawn care and maintenance.
Why is Dethatching Important?
Dethatching is the process of removing the thatch that builds up in your lawn. This process can be done with a machine as well as using a thatching rake or leaf rake.
A small thatch build-up, usually a half (1/2) inch, is beneficial for your lawn. It acts as a protective barrier that helps in conserving soil moisture and protecting your lawn against notable fluctuations in soil temperatures. Moreover, a thin layer of thatch allows the nutrients, water, and air to reach the grassroots and soil.
However, it becomes a problem when the thatch grows into one (1) or more inches thick. The thick thatch becomes a barrier that hinders the water and fertilizer from penetrating the plant roots. Furthermore, the grassroots gets trapped beneath the thatch, which makes them vulnerable to drought, heat, and stress.
In addition, the water can amass within the thatch. This results in suffocating the plant roots because the air cannot pass through. Moreover, the thatch can become a breeding ground for insect pests and lawn diseases which can further damage your yard.
Not all lawns need dethatching. However, if you need one, then knowing how to dethatch is crucial knowledge you should have.
Tips on How to Dethatch Your Lawn
Dethatching is a foreign activity for many lawn owners since it was not a popular lawn care activity. Moreover, it can also be quite confusing, especially if you haven’t done it before. However, don’t fret because we offer you the four (4) dethatching tips to help you along your journey.
Determine if Your Lawn Needs Dethatching
The first thing you need to do is determine whether your lawn needs a dethatching or not. You can identify it by watering your lawn. If the water runs off without reaching the grass plants, then it is time to dethatch.
Another trick is taking out a small section of your lawn grass and soil using a spade or garden trowel. From then, you can easily measure the thatch layer. If the layer exceeds one (1) inch, then the time for dethatching has come. Moreover, you can see signs of poor grass color and weak, thin growth when this happens.
Prep Your Lawn for Dethatching
It is crucial to prep your lawn so that you won’t damage it during the dethatching process. Your soil should be moist during dethatching, not soggy. That is why thoroughly water your lawn two (2) days before the dethatching day. Moreover, mow your lawn beforehand to half its usual size.
If you are using a dethatching machine, remember to mark any sprinkler heads, irrigation lines, and any buries utilities you have before starting so that you won’t hit any of them.
Furthermore, if you’re renting the machine, ask the rental company to adjust cutting depth and spacing according to your grass type. The blades should not cut deeper than half (1/2) inches into the soil. Moreover, ask and get the complete instruction on how to use the machine.
Choose a Dethatching Method
There are multiple ways to dethatch your lawn. The three (3) most common methods are the following:
- Manual Dethatching. If you’re dethatching manually, all you need is a dethatching rake. They are heavy, short-tined with curved blades so that you can easily pull the thatch as you rake. This method is most suitable for light and a small amount of thatch in small lawns.
- Power Rakes. This device is similar to a mower but has rotating, rake-like tines. It’s designed to dig into the thatch at the soil level and pull it out. Power rakes are also appropriate for taking out a thin thatch layer. However, this can be destructive to your grass. Make sure that your grass plant is strong enough before using this method.
- Vertical Mowers – Is a machine with vertical blades intended to slice through the thick thatch layer and pass through the soil. It pulls out the thatch and sometimes the grassroots into the surface as they pass. Vertical mowers, also known as verticutters, are best for taking out thick thatch build-up.
If you still can’t decide which method works best for your lawn, then research how to dethatch a lawn full guide to help you decide.
Know When to Dethatch Your Lawn
Like other lawn health initiatives such as overseeding and planting new lawns, dethatching must coincide with the time your grass type is actively growing. When your grass is growing, it helps in speeding up your lawn’s recovery.
Dethatch cool-season grasses in late summer or early fall. For warm-season grasses, it is best to dethatch in late spring through the early summer.
The Bottom Line
Common causes of thatch building up in your lawn are over-fertilizing, overwatering, and mowing too high. These simple lawn care activities unsuspectingly cause a problem if you don’t execute them properly. In addition, heavy pesticides, low soil pH, compacted soil, and lawn grass type are factors whether your lawn is susceptible to thatch build-up or not.
However, now that you know what you are dealing with, you can easily avoid what causes the thatch build-up in the first place. It is also wise to include dethatching as a regular task of lawn care and maintenance.