| No matter what fertilizer I use, my grass just does not look healthy. And its always patchy. Help. |
| It may be that your lawn needs dethatching or aerating. All turfgrass develops thatch but if it becomes too thick, water and fertilizer cannot penetrate to the roots of the grass. You can dig out a shovelful of grass and inspect it to measure the thatch (dead stolons and roots). If it is an inch or more thick, it's time to dethach. Replace the shovelful of grass and rent a power dethatcher. If the thatch is less than an inch thick, it may be time to aerate your lawn. A core aerator will remove one inch by three inch plugs from the lawn. Leave the plugs on the lawn and they will dissolve in rain or water from the sprinklers. After aerating spread a thin layer of sand or compost over the area and water it in well. The sand or compost plus the soil from the plugs will work their way down into the holes left by the plugs. You can then overseed your entire lawn. Either approach should improve the soil beneath the lawn and help your lawn grow lush and thick. |
