When is the best time to scarify a lawn? Light scarification or removing the thatch can be done in spring, around the month of April, when it’s getting warmer. In spring the growth and recovery rate of your lawn, and all your plants, is the highest.
Do you scarify before or after cutting?
For the best results, mow the lawn before scarifying. You should also feed your lawn before scarifying.
When should I scarify?
Late spring and early autumn are considered to be the two best times to scarify your lawn, capitalising on both the weather and the conditions of the ground. Most garden experts agree that the ideal time to scarify your lawn is when your grass is growing strongly.
Does the grass need to be dry to scarify?
2. Make sure your lawn is moist. Water your lawn a couple of days before scarification and avoid scarifying your lawn if it is wet. Scarifying your lawn when it is wet may result in your scarifier pulling the grass up by its roots instead of removing just the unwanted layer of thatch or moss.
What is the best month to scarify a lawn? – Related Questions
Should I seed straight after scarifying?
However, if you’ve done a thorough de-mossing or de-thatching then it’s risky to expect a full and uniform recovery so get some grass seed into the whole lawn. If you’re going to be using iron sulphate or an iron fertiliser AND over seeding put the seed in at least a couple of days afterwards.
Should I reseed my lawn after scarifying?
For areas of your garden that have become bare during the scarification process, then you should consider reseeding these areas of your lawn. This is relevant if you are scarifying your lawn in the spring. March to April is the ideal time to begin growing grass from seeds.
Should I wet the lawn before scarifying?
Can you scarify in drought?
Unless you are looking to repair or have thick thatch, I wouldn’t scarify a drought affected lawn. You are much more likely to do damage than good. Chopping and tearing the growth nodes of the grass will knock it back and may kill it. Allow the lawn to recover itself.
When should you not scarify your lawn?
Lawns should typically be scarified once a year, with the best times either in spring or in autumn. You should seek to scarify at times when your grass is growing strongly, as scarifying in periods like winter or the height of summer can cause issues due to either excess cold or dry heat.
What are the best conditions to scarify a lawn?
Ideally the soil should be warm and moist, and autumn is pretty much the only time of year we have these optimum conditions. These conditions are necessary as when we carry out scarification it removes a large volume of thatch and your lawn can look very bare afterwards until it recovers.
How do I know if my lawn needs scarifying?
How can I tell if my lawn needs scarifying? Too much thatch in a lawn will give your grass a spongy feel when you walk on it. You should be able to see a layer 0.5-1cm thick when you look at the sides of your turf – anymore than this is excessive and unhealthy for your lawn.
What comes first aerating or scarifying?
When considering both aerating and scarifying, it’s better to scarify first, then aerate– but leave a few days in between the two exercises to allow your lawn to recover before you put it through all that work again.
What do you feed grass after scarifying?
Only use general fertiliser or pre-seeding fertiliser, and avoid fertilisers with weed killer in them, as this will harm the seeds. Also, there is no need to feed the lawn if you have done so in the last few months.
Will scarifying get rid of weeds?
Regular scarifying can keep down annual weeds too as well as helping to reduce the perennial ones. Weeding your lawn is something you can do either with a weed killing chemical which you put on the lawn, or manually. If you’ve only got a few weeds then it’s not a huge chore to manually remove them.
What is the difference between a scarifier and a dethatcher?
Even though they both serve the same purpose, a scarifier is similar to vertical mowing. It cuts grooves through the thatch that helps in better water and oxygen movement into the soil. On the contrary, a dethatcher helps to remove lawn debris and works similarly to a lawn raker.
How deep should I scarify my lawn?
The right depth for scarifying depends on the nature of the soil and the degree of matting of your lawn, which should be between 3 and 20 mm. Then move the device lengthways and then across the surface, creating a fine checkerboard pattern.
How does grass look after scarifying?
It’s patchy, uneven in colour and quite dull. On the right, you can see the lawn after it’s been scarified. The lawn is much healtier and the colour is brighter and more even! It’s true that your scarified lawn might look terrible for a period, but once it’s recovered you’ll be grateful that you got it done.