Thatch is organic matter that has built up below the grass blades and the soil. This organic matter is usually grass clippings, and leaves are the main culprits.
===========================================================


What is thatch? Thatch is a build-up of organic materials. These organic materials can be grass clippings, and leaves. These will build up over time as you mow your grass. Even mulching your grass is not a deterrent. It is best to check your lawn at least twice a year to keep an eye on the build-up.

Thatch can create a barrier that will prevent water, oxygen, and nutrients from reaching the roots. Which can lead to grass that is not as healthy as it could be. So if you are watering regularly, and feeding your lawn and your lawn still looks like its having a hard time growing. Thatch could very well be your problem

A lawn that is deprived of the nutrients, water, and oxygen it needs can lead to a lawn that is subject to disease. Also pests like to burrow into the thatch to build their homes. Here they can attack the roots of the grass and be sheltered.  De thatching a lawn is crucial to having a healthy lawn, and creating a lot less work in the long term.

The thickness of the thatch needs to be on a quarter of an inch thick to create the barrier. You can use your fingers or a flat head screwdriver to lift up the thatch to determine if you need to remove it.

You can remove thatch different ways, you can rake the yard each time that you mow. This will keep the grass clippings to a minimum. Don't let your grass grow tall, this will cause the blades to cut long stems instead of short. These will lay on the lawn and cause a build-up.

Or you can wear golfing shoes with the cleats in the bottom as you walk around the lawn. Or you can use a de-thatching rake which has sharp tines that will claw the thatch out of the lawn.

Before you fertilize your lawn each time, it would be best to de-thatch your lawn this will let the fertilizer to work itself down into the ground to where the roots are instead of staying on top and burning your lawn.

There are power de-thatching rakes, either gas or electric powered. Just before fertilizing your lawn in the spring and fall, when the weather is good for fast growth of the grass, mechanically remove thatch with a de-tatching rake, that cut into the thatch so you can rake it up and dump it into the compost pile. For large areas, you might want to rent a power rake to do the same job.

Some tillers come with reversible tines that can be used to de-tatch lawns with. Or some might come with different set of tines for the tiller to do the job with.

Overfeeding your lawn can cause faster build-up of thatch because you encourage faster than normal growth of the grass. This will cause you to have to mow more often.

Don't overfeed your lawn, Pushing your luck with fertilizers, can cause thatch problems that wouldn't have otherwise exist if the lawn were allowed to grow at a reasonable rate.

As always when using any tools in the yard or garden, be sure to wear safety clothing, like long sleeves and pants. Eye and ear protection, and gloves. When handling fertilizers, and or any chemicals. The rakes especially power rakes can be dangerous, handle with care and always read and understand the safety and handling precautions when using these tools.

Always Put Safety First and Be Safe.
Happy Gardening and May All Your Plants Bloom Beautifully.

Jesse Auburg  Online Marketing  Entrepreneur
Jesse’s Carpentry  Tips 
Jesse’s Online Computer Services