For many years dethaching lawns was a popular service offered by lawn care companies. In the last few years new evidence has shown that dethaching lawns can be detrimental to their health, and because of that Lush Lawn does not offer this service. Thatch is a completely normal occurrence. In fact, all healthy lawns have thatch. A problem only exists if the thatch layer gets so thick that water and air have trouble getting to the root system. The thatch layer can thicken when there is an inadequate mowing frequency, over-watering, and over-fertilization.
Instead, aeration has proven to be the most beneficial lawn service outside of regular care (mowing, fertilizing, watering). The process of aeration punches holes in the lawn’s thatch layer and soil substrate, allowing for water and nutrients to sink right down to the root system. Because aeration targets both the thatch layer and soil compaction, it is recommended to perform at least once per year in the spring or fall. For more information on aeration, click here to see our FAQ on aeration.
Watering your lawn is very important to the overall health of the turfgrass and to ensure that the treatments you have paid for do their work. If fertilizer is not watered into the lawn – either through rain or your sprinklers, it cannot provide the nutrients your lawn needs.
The best time to water is right before sunrise. This allows the water time to penetrate the lawn before the heat of the sun hits it. Michigan lawns typically need approximately 1” of water per week. A long thorough soaking is better than many short waterings
Sometimes after an application in the summer months, the yard will get a little “tip-burn”. The salts in the fertilizer may slightly burn the grass or it could be a little burn from the herbicide. Either way this condition is temporary. Please follow the watering instructions left behind by your service technician to aid in the recovery for a lush-green lawn.
Also, many times in the hot summer months, lawns will have diseases that show up only after you walk or drive on the lawn. Footprints and tire tracks are not necessarily the result of “fertilizer burn” or excessive weed control, it is the disease “melting out”. Most times the lawn will recover on its own with fertilizer and water. Depending upon the severity of the disease a disease control treatment may be necessary to prevent further damage.
In the fall and winter, areas may turn yellow to yellow-brown after an application. This is normal for this time of year. The yard is going dormant and may not turn green again after this application until spring.
We recommend that during the normal growing season you keep your lawn cut to approximately 3” in height. This is an optimum height for keeping the lawn healthy and green, it reduces the need for watering and is better for the grass, particularly during times of drought. Mowing shorter requires additional watering to keep your lawn green and can contribute to weed germination and growth. In fall, as weeds stop germinating, you can lower your cutting height to approximately 2” which will help mulch any leaves that fall in your yard.
It is usually best to wait 24 hours before watering the grass following an application that contains weed control. Also make sure that within 7 days of the application the product has been watered into the soil either by rain or sprinkler to ensure the best results.
You can cut the grass any time after the product has been watered into the soil for granular fertilizer.
