Should i dethatch before fertilizing

To help prevent thatch from forming, use a mulching mower. For northern grass the best time to dethatch your entire lawn is in late summer to early fall when the grass is actively growing.

For southern grasses, dethatch in late spring. In early spring, and for small areas, use a thatching rake, which is a sharp-tined rake that rips the thatch out of the lawn. Leaf rakes or hard rakes can be used but may not work as well. Rake the grass, digging deep to penetrate the thatch and loosen it apart. In early spring removing thatch by raking is best to prevent damaging new growth.

When dethatching your entire lawn use a power dethatcher over the lawn in a pattern that covers the grass only once. Flag irrigation heads and other hidden objects in the lawn to prevent damage. When the task is finished, the lawn will look terrible, but don't panic. It's supposed to look that way.

You can rent a power dethatcher from most garden centers. Enlist the help of a couple of friends and a truck when picking up the equipment, it will be heavy and awkward. We may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

Lawn maintenance should be done regularly, whether you are dethatching, fertilizing, cutting, or aerating. The answer to the question is to make sure you dethatch first before aerating your lawn. Loosening up and clearing the surface of the ground is best done before aerating. Performing these steps in this sequence will give you the best results for a thick, lush, and beautiful lawn. Keep reading for all the details on how to have a fantastic looking lawn! Aerating is best done right after dethatching , preferably in the fall following a complete growing season.

The type of grass you have and the climate in which you live also determine when to dethatch and aerate as well. Before we get into the topic of dethatching or aerating , we want to touch on when you should be doing these tasks. For cool-season yards, this is usually between late summer and early autumn August through October. Aeration also known as aerification or aeriation is a procedure whereby air is circulated through the soil.

This process is vital to the health of your lawn and should not be overlooked. Aeration helps to both improve drainage and reduce puddle formations. It also aids in the spread of nutrients and water throughout the soil while encouraging deeper roots to form. Dethatching is the process by which thatch a layer of organic matter including dead grass, leaves, and weeds that form at the base of grass plants is removed from lawns.

A de-thatcher is a mechanical device that is pulled behind a garden tractor and abrades the surface or subsurface of your lawn using metal blades or prongs. Dethatching is also vital to lawn health. It enables grass to grow thicker and makes it less susceptible to disease.

Depending on your lawn and weather conditions, some fertilizer may be in order after you aerate the lawn. Certain types of grasses, such as zoysia and fine fescue, tend to produce dense thatch faster than others -- and a long, hot, dry summer can turn an entire lawn of even the most drought-tolerant grass to thatch.

Thatch removal can be traumatic for grass plants, so recovery techniques must encourage root repair and deep growth. In a perfect world, enough rain would fall the night before dethatching to loosen the thatch layer and 1 inch of rain would gently fall throughout the night after you finished fertilizing to wash it into the soil instead of the storm sewer. A half-strength application -- 1 pound or less of actual nitrogen per 1, square feet of turf -- of slow-release urea fertilizer will gently nourish recovering roots.