Causes of Thatch Buildup

• Improperly mowing your grass adds to the buildup of destructive thatch. Improper mowing techniques include using a dull mowing blade, allowing grass to grow too high, over-watering, over-fertilizing and soil compaction. Monitoring these actions will enable you to avoid an unnatural buildup of thatch. If you properly mow your yard with a lawn mower and do not overuse a dethatcher, you can maintain your lawn's beauty and health.
  
  

Description of Thatch

• Thatch is an organic layer of living shoots, stems and roots of grass that build up on the soil's surface. While a small amount of thatch is healthy for a lawn, a large amount of thatch blocks water and air movement, reduces fertilizer response and increases insect and disease activity.
  
  

Aerification

• Aerification is part of healthy lawn maintenance. Aerification is the removal of soil compaction, which improves water and air movement in the soil and improves the overall health of the lawn. Aerification is also beneficial in the removal of thatch. Aerification is the process of punching holes through the thatch on the top of the soil, to the soil level. This process increases the availability of water to penetrate directly to the roots of the grass. Aerification should ideally be done in the fall or in spring when the grass is actively growing.
  
  

The Dethatching Process

• While most homeowners do not own a dethatcher, these machines are available for rent. A dethatcher is a power rake that has blades that revolve, ripping out both dead and living organic matter and bringing it to the surface where it all eventually dies.
  
  If your lawn hasn't been dethatched in over two years, you might need to run this machine over the same areas two or three times. This leaves an unattractive layer of dead grass and roots on top of your grass. Rake up the dead and dying grass caused by dethatching after the process is complete to avoid the re-growth of stems or roots.
  
  

Reseeding After Dethatching

• After you have dethatched your yard and raked up all the dead grass stems and roots, you are ready to re-seed the lawn. This new grass seed will incorporate itself into the newly thatched soil area, and begin new growth within 2-3 weeks.
  
  

Warning

• It is not recommended to use the thatch clippings as compost or mulch unless it is fertilizer and pesticide free. Because the thatch maybe older grass, review the previous years of lawn maintenance to be sure that you hadn't used any of these dangerous chemicals on your lawn. Dethatching too often can cause problems as well, so every 2 years is a reasonable schedule.