Grass is just like any other plant; there is the part that lies below the ground (root system), another part above the ground (the green growing grass) and a part that lies in between (the thatch). Some thatch is ideal for your lawn, but lots of them can cause some serious problems. Dethatching the lawn has a number of benefits.
What is thatch?
Thatch occurs as a natural part of lawn’s growing process. Like grass, it’s made up of roots, stems and leaves. Some of them are usually dead while others are alive. The required thickness for thatch is between 0.5 to 0.75 inches; any thatch within this range is beneficial to your lawn. However, if they grow past this range, you are advised to consider dethatching.
What does dethatching mean?
Dethatching is a type of lawn maintenance that should be done when the thickness of the thatch exceeds the 0.75 inch mark or when your lawn has too much thatch. This service is recommended to be done at least once per year. The good news is, there are many tools and equipment available on the market to help home owners to get rid of the excess thatches.
What are the benefits of dethatching your lawn?
1. Guarantees your lawn sufficient nutrients
As mentioned earlier, thatch is simply a layer of dead grass or plant materials that includes leaves, grass and roots, which are not essential to the health of your lawn. Some people consider them to be a form of compost materials, but it’s a decomposing plant that can deny your lawn essential nutrients.
Dethatching allows you to get rid of these plants like materials and “open up” your lawn for nutrients. Nutrients are very essential for the growth of your lawn. Remember, grass is just like any other plant, in light of this, it needs access to the right type of nutrients to grow and maintain its beauty.
2. Allows water and air to get to the soil
In order for your lawn to grow properly they must have access to sufficient water and air. They are living things and water and air is necessary for their growth. Thatch prevents water and air from reaching the soil and makes it difficult for laws to grow properly.
Actually, if your lawn is full of thatch that is beyond one inch in thickness, the chance of them growing healthy is close to zero. However, if you love green grass and like to spend some time outdoors enjoying the beauty of nature, dethatching is the only way you are going to see healthy green grass. Make sure that your lawn is getting enough water and air.
3. Eliminate thatch from your lawn
Thatch can be very beneficial to your lawn, but there is a limit to the thickness and amount of thatch that your lawn needs. The benefits of thatch include:
- Mulching soil and slows the rate of water loss
- Cushioning soil
- Decreases compaction and protect grass crowns against soil temperature changes
- Improves lawn’s ability to withstand mower traffic
- However, the same thatch can also cause some serious problems to your lawn. Too much thatch and thatch that exceeds one inch reduces lawn health by:
- Reducing the amount of nutrient that your grass receives
- Limit the amount of water and air that gets into the soil
- Forms an impervious layer that makes it difficult for fertilizers and disease control to get into the soil
- Prevent sunlight from getting to the base of the grass edges
- Can cause diseases by preventing moisture from reaching the grass blades
- Creates a lawn that is not uniform
Looking at the advantages and disadvantages of thatch, it’s clear that the disadvantages outweigh the advantages by far. This is why dethatching is recommended to remove thatch.
4. Improves the health of your Soil
It’s clear that thatch prevents essential nutrients from reaching the soil. In addition, it’s also impossible for enough water and air to get into the soil. In light of this, your grass can still grow, but their health will be questionable.
In order to improve the health of your lawn, dethatching is advised. Dethatching helps to remove the unwanted plant materials and grass that lie on the surface of your lawn. By doing so, your lawn get access to direct sunlight, water and air gets into the soil and this leads to healthy lawn.
5. Increases the beauty of your lawn
If we are being honest, there’s nothing that is more beautiful than a healthy lawn. As much as thinner thatch can be beneficial, they can also be the reason why your lawn is not amazing. Remember, too much thatch can result to uneven lawn.
The thing about uneven lawn is that even when it’s mowed it will still remain to be uneven. Actually, the non-uniformity will come out clear and be visible for the whole world to see. The good news is detaching can help you to remove all the plants materials and dead grass that are causing your lawn to lose its shape and beauty. Consider dethatching your lawn today if you want to improve its beauty.
6. Allows fertilizers to reach the soil
If you try to apply fertilizer on a lawn that is full of thatch, chances are that the fertilizer will not reach the soil and serve its purpose. The only way to make sure that the fertilizer you apply works is by dethatching your lawn. Dethatching will ensure that the fertilizer applied reaches the soils and spreads uniformly throughout the soil.
In addition, the health of your roots will also improve significantly. The roots of a plant are very important. If the roots of your grass are not healthy, there is no way that your lawn will grow to be beautiful.
The bottom line is thatch is nothing but a layer of dead plant materials and grass on the surface of your soil. There are many benefits associated to it, but too much of them can be bad for your lawn.
Some people may have been misled about the reasons for dethatching, but the truth is, detaching is the only way to improve the health and beauty of your lawn. So, if you haven’t thought about dethatching your lawn, it’s advised that you dethatch it at least once every year.
