I apologize if anyone has a problem with me posting this question here, but this group is so knowledgeable, in everything it seems, that I wanted to try to get some help.
The man who thatches our yard is no longer available. I have heard that you can buy a 21" thatching blade and attach it to your lawnmower.
Has anyone tried this, and is it hard work? I was going to use my lawnmower to pick up the dead grass, after thatching, and avoid the hard job of raking.
Many thanks.
Corinne
Its should work, but to stop getting thatch stop using Chemlawn or quick release fertilisers,such as liquids. Over fertilising will also cause thatch
Properly done, with a dethatching machine, de-thatching is like combing your hair to get the loose hairs out. Visualize a comb whose teeth can swing up and down, and you'll get an idea of how a dethatching machine operates. The swinging flails on a dethatching machine comb over the lawn and - this protects your lawn from damage and you from flying objects - bounce back when they hit an obstruction.
In other words, the dethatcher's action is a down-and-up motion to 'comb out' some of the excess thatch and crud from your grass.
Lawnmower blades rotate over the top layer of the lawn. They are not design to move downward into the thatch layer. So-called dethatching blades are usually lawnmower blades with a couple of finger-shaped metal springs attached to the ends. As the blade rotates, the stubby ends of the springs dig into the lawn and rip out some of the crud. But, being they are attached to a blade which is set at a fixed distance from the ground, they cannot 'comb through' the grass to dislodge most of the thatch.
Lawn tractors and riding mowers sometimes have dethatching rake attachments available, which do 'comb through' the grass to remove some of the thatch. However, because the individual blades do not have the swinging flail action of a dethatching machine, they will not remove as much thatch as would a dethatching maching. Still, they work better than the cheapo lawnmower thatching blades.
If you want the job done right, you will probably want to call around to some local garden centers, nurseries, or independent hardware stores, and see if they offer this service or can refer you to someone who does. Remember not to do this job(if you're doing this in the spring) until the lawn is fully dried, so the healthy grass plants won't be torn out of the soft ground. Dethatching increases the likelihood of annual weed seeds, like crabgrass, sprouting in your lawn, so after dethatching, at the right date for your area (call your county extension office), you may want to apply a preemergent crabgrass preventer.
HellT
Find someone else to do the job or rent a dethatcher to do the job. you lawnmower is made to cut grass, by changeing the blade to do other jobs you are trying to make it do a job it is not designed for and can result in damage to the lawnmower.
How much thatch do you have? You don't need to de-thatch every year.
The thatching blades will work to a point. If you have a heavy lawn you will be surprised at the amount of stuff you will get off the lawn when you use the thatch blade. When your done you will need to mow the lawn with the regular blade to remove the rest of the thatch. I used to get 30 bags when I did mine.
If you really want to do it right after you thatch then you need to get a pro machine that pokes holes called coring. The area of grass that grows and makes it lush is called the RYE zone. Coring holes in the ground creates drainage and removes some of the root system. Causing the grass to grow at a fanatic rate. Fertilizer after this is excellent.
Thatch removal, which scratches the surface is good every year. Coring ever other year. IMO
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The lawnmower blade thatchers will do the job - sort of. My experience is that they beat what remains of the grass to a pulp. Any footsteps or other compression of the treated surface compresses the "pulp" into an organic mat which the grass will have a hard time growing through. Frequent raking can alleviate the problem. It is probably better to rent a real thatcher.
Bob
As a followup to this question, does one need to dethatch every year?
Kevin
Thank you Bob.
Someone else told me this today.
Cor> Find someone else to do the job or rent a dethatcher to do the job. you
I tried the dethatching blade once. it destroyed my lawn. I also recommend you look into core aeration as a means to eliminate thatch
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