Scarify a lawn

Scarifying a lawn is suggested by the garden press and on TV gardening programmes. Only Scarify if you have too much thatch in your lawn. After the process your lawn may look worse then before. A lawn will soon recover provided it was scarified at the right time of year.

What Does Scarifying Actually Do ?

Scarifying removes thatch which allows air to get around the plant. Water and nutrients to get to the roots.

Scarifying will take out some of the living plant. This is often the lateral growth, which is good as we want the grass growth to be upright so a mower can cut it. Also this stops a particular species of grass from taking over your Lawn. Scarifying will remove moss, remaining moss is managed with a lawn treatment after scarifying.

What Is Thatch ?

Thatch is consists of mostly dead plant material. Grass produces thatch as it grows. When the grass is growing vigorously more thatch is produced. It will build up because it is very slow to decompose.

Small amounts of grass blades not collected by mowing are present in the thatch. They do not case a problem as they decompose very quickly compared to the stolons and rhizomes parts of the plant, which are the main components of the thatch.

When To Scarify ?

The best time of year to have your lawn scarified is when it is not under any stress but is growing reasonably well. Spring is the time to lightly scarify a lawn allowing enough time for it to recover before the dry and heat of the summer. Autumn is good for renovating a lawn so after a good scarify you may want an over seed with a good quality grass seed matched to your lawns needs . This time a year sees cooler wetter conditions which are good for recovery.