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Scarification

amberspyamberspy Posts: 382
in Problem solving
Do you all do it ?
green thumb due do mine soon 
but I’m wondering if should cancel it 
as they did last year and recovery was awful
they had give it two extra treatments and reseed in parts 
so it’s put me off having done again 

Posts

  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    OH uses a machine and yes, it does look dreadful for a week or so but is better for it afterwards.   The essential thing is not cut the grass short afterwards but to have the mower blades on their highest setting for the next few weeks.

    If yours is so bad you need re-seeding I would suggest you have excess moss and weeds in which case you need to consider aeration to improve drainage and a suitable weed and feed in April.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    I scarify my lawn (with a machine) in Autumn (September) not Spring, to get rid of the thatch and dry dead grass that tends to accumulate over the summer, particularly if there's a dry spell. I might do a bit of lighter raking in Spring if I think it needs it, but I don't usually bother.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    I'm going to be using a powered lawn rake for the first time in the next week or two.  Our green area is more moss interspersed with areas of weed and grass than a lawn.  I'm prepared for it to look terrible for a while.
  • amberspyamberspy Posts: 382
    Obelixx said:
    OH uses a machine and yes, it does look dreadful for a week or so but is better for it afterwards.   The essential thing is not cut the grass short afterwards but to have the mower blades on their highest setting for the next few weeks.

    If yours is so bad you need re-seeding I would suggest you have excess moss and weeds in which case you need to consider aeration to improve drainage and a suitable weed and feed in April.
    Only few patches got reseed 
    green thumb does our treatments four times a year 
    it did recover but only with further treatments which they fixed FREE 
    just wary of getting done again 
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    It should only be scarified in spring and autumn.    Weed and feed treatments are also usually done in spring and autumn.   You should stay off the grass in winter when the ground is wetter or frozen and just keep it cut in summer.

    If it's done right your lawn should get better over the years so just make sure the subsequent cuts are high enough to leave some green blades on the grass so it can photosynthesise, feed itself and grow stronger roots and then stronger leaves.  Virtuous circle.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
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