Maintain a Healthy Looking Yard with a Residential Lawn Dethatcher

Dethatching is a vital part of lawn care. Without it, a layer of thatch, or dead grass and weeds, builds up in between the blades of grass in a lawn. This layer becomes thicker and thicker if you don’t remove it. Over time, it can get so thick and compacted that it doesn’t let water and nutrients reach the soil and grass roots. Excessive thatch can result in yellow spots at best and the death of large patches of your lawn if you don’t address it. Dethatching pulls up this thatch layer and opens up the roots of the grass to the water and nutrients it needs.

Types of Lawn Dethatchers

Hand Dethatcher Rake

You’ll want to use a hand rake to get into the tight spaces you can’t reach with a mower or pull-behind dethatcher. While you could dethatch an entire lawn with one of these rakes, it’s a lot of work. Unless you have a very small yard, consider one of the powered options below.

Walk-Behind Lawn Dethatcher

The walk-behind type is a push mower-like piece of equipment. It works well for small and medium-sized lawns. For larger lawns, or to speed the process up, go with a dethatching blade for your mower or a pull-behind unit.

Lawn Dethatcher Blades for Lawn Mowers

You can get special blades for a lawn mower that turn your rider or push mower into a lawn dethatching machine. This is a great option to remove thatch from the average-sized residential yard.

Pull-Behind Lawn Dethatcher

A pull-behind unit hooks up to the back of a riding lawn mower or lawn tractor. These cover the biggest area of the three types. They make quick work of even the largest lawns. However, they might be a bit difficult to maneuver through small lawns or through landscaping with lots of trees and shrubs.

How to Dethatch Your Lawn

1. Cut your grass a bit shorter than normal with your lawn mower. 

Avoid scalping, but give that lawn a buzz cut. Usually, lowering your mower’s height setting by one notch is enough.

2. Make two passes over the entire lawn with a lawn dethatcher to tear up all the thatch. 

You can make a third if you like. Overlap each pass by a couple of inches just like you would if you were mowing.

3. Make one more pass at a 90-degree angle to your first two. 

Feel free to make another pass if you think there’s more thatch to be lifted. The idea is to be as thorough as you can so you don’t have to dethatch twice in the same season.

4. Rake up the thatch and dispose of it. 

If you have a compost pile, toss it on top. If not, burn it in your fire pit or take it to a waste disposal center.

5. Water and fertilize your lawn (Follow our 3 Tips for Picking a Fertilizer to get the right fertilizer for your lawn). 

It should green up in a few weeks, but you have to give it an initial nudge with some extra nutrients and water. Be careful to get the right fertilizer and don’t overwater it.

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