How To Dethatch A Lawn

Thatch is the layer composed of living and dead leaves of grass, plant stems, crowns and roots that develop between the green part of your grass and the surface of the soil. Thatch is important for the health of the lawn, but if its thickness exceeds one inch, it starts acting as a water barrier and it also prevents the access of nutrients and air to the roots of the grass, therefore it needs to be removed. Here is how to do it:

• Determine whether the lawn needs to be dethatched – if you see that the water you apply while watering your lawn pools on the top and cannot get absorbed into the soil or if you see an extensive greyish matt under the green leaves of grass, you should start preparing for the dethatching;
• Pick the time for the dethatching process – the right time for dethatching depends on the type of your grass. Northern-type grass should be dethatched in late summer, while the best time for dethatching southern grass is late spring;
• The dethatching process – you can either do it manually, picking up the thatch with your hand, loosening it with a small tool or, if your lawn is large, you can rent a dethatcher machine. Make sure to remove all the debris picked up, then aerate, reseed (if necessary) and fertilze with products from The Richlawn Company and water the lawn.

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