Ways to Dethatch a Lawn

There are two different ways in which you can dethatch your lawn. One is manually with a garden or a dethatching rake. The second way is by using s power dethatcher. If you have small yards you can easily dethatch it manually. It is time consuming and less stressful when compared to the power dethatching. If the thatch is not very thick and is not more than one inch you can use the manual method for removing it with a dethatching rake. But if you have large gardens you have to use the power tools for finishing the job easily and effectively. Before using the power tool you have to consider a few things. First, you need to mow the lawn and then you have to rent a dethatcher. You can also take the help of a professional to do the job for you. These devices are similar to the aerators. The engines are located just above the wheels. But instead of having horizontal blades the dethatchers use vertical blades to cut grass to the soil surface. The machine is very heavy and may require more than one person to transport it to the location. If you have not used the device before it is better to hire a professional because the machine has a lot of vertically aligned blades that have to be controlled to the exact height of the grass.


In case you are renting a machine for the purpose you have to set the blade spacing and the depth. Most often these are already set by the company to cut about 1/3 inch into the soil, remove and stir the soil etc. Warm season and tough grasses like Bermuda require a blade spacing of about 1-2 inches. For delicate and thinner grasses you can set it to about 3 inches. Once you start using the machine and understand its working you will be easily able to make these settings. For better coverage try to make a few crossing patterns. After completing the procedure remove all the debris from the ground. It is very important to remove the debris from the ground after dethatching. It can be done using a normal leaf rake.

After dethatching it is time to fertilize your lawn and reseed it. If you want to reseed follow it up by pushing the seed into the soil. Then add the fertilizer and use a light covering. Provide some amount of water after dethatching especially if it is summer. If you are reseeding, be sure to water daily for at least 3 weeks. Dethatching is not a very easy process. You have to be very careful while using the blades. If it is not done properly it can spoil the whole look and feel.