Dethatching For Health

Dethatching For Health
By James Z Stroud

There are two layers to your grass plant; the grass that can be seen and a root system below ground. In the middle are bits of dead grass and debris called thatch. Thatch forms a protective layer keeping your grass stronger by sealing in moisture.

Most see dethatching as a chore that involves work or renting special equipment, but the return can be enormous in improving the overall health of your lawn. It is important and is not to be taken lightly.For a small lawn, thatch can easily be removed with a rake. Renting a power rake to remove the thatch would be best for larger lawns. Too much thatch can be detrimental to your lawn, but remember a certain amount is needed for lawn health, so don't get crazy wanting to remove it down to the dirt. The next question is: how much is necessary to remove? The ideal amount of thatch that you want to maintain for moisture control is about 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch. Any thicker than that will inhibit the growth of your grass by preventing water and nutrients from penetrating to the roots. Even worse, it encourages pest and disease to flourish causing more harm and eventually costing you more money and time to resuscitate your lawn from death. You can check the thickness of the thatch by digging out a small plug to explore the layers.

De-thatch is the term used when removing thatch from your yard. This is done, as mentioned earlier, by using a special rake or for lawns with thicker amount of thatch, a special machine from your local home improvement store. The best time to dethatch is late spring. This gives your lawn plenty of time to grow and recover due to moderate temperature. The amount of dethatching will largely depend upon the type of grass you have. Warm-season grasses such as Bermuda or Zoysia tend to accumulate more thatch than other grasses.

For future reference, it is better to dethatch before it gets thick. Make dethatching something that you do annually in order to decrease the shock of profound dethatching. When dethatching is finished, it would be ideal to spread some grass seed and rake into the grass to encourage new growth. Don't forget watering to complete your lawn revitalization and you will be well on your way to a greener healthier lawn this spring.

You can find more lawncare articles and tips at http://www.lawncaremadeeasy.com

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