Gardening: Scarify the lawn correctly

 When scarifying your lawn, remove moss and lawn felt. 

The grass roots get more oxygen and the lawn becomes denser and more durable overall. 

Here you can find instructions.

MSG/Folkert Siemens
The scarifier combs moss and lawn felt from the sward with a rotating blade roller

You can easily determine the time from which you should scarify your lawn: 

Pull a small metal rake or a cultivator loosely through the grass and see if old 

mowing debris and moss cushions get caught on the tines. 

A lot of weeds in the lawn is also a clear indication that the lawn grasses are inhibited in their growth. 

Either a lack of nutrients or a thick layer of lawn felt hinders the oxygen supply to the lawn roots. 

Prone to the formation of lawn felt are heavy, 

low-air loamy soils, which tend to stagnate moisture, and shady lawns. 

However, a well aerated soil, warmth and an even water supply are important for optimal decomposition of the grass residues.

At a glance: Scarify the lawn

The lawn should be absolutely dry before scarifying. 

Adjust your scarifier to the correct height so that the blades do not penetrate the ground more than three millimetres. 

Try to work as evenly as possible and run your lawn first in longitudinal and then in transverse tracks. 

When cornering, you should press the handlebar down so that the blades do not leave too deep a mark.

 Does your lawn need to be completely renewed? How to do it in just one weekend

How to renew your lawn without digging

Your lawn is just a patchy patch of moss and weeds? No problem: 

With these tips you can renew your lawn - without digging around!. Read more

 The right scarifier

Scarifiers have a horizontally installed spindle or axle, which is fitted at short intervals with fixed or rotating blades. 

The motor causes the axle to rotate, the blades scarify the turf by a few millimeters and remove moss and lawn felt from the lawn.

Gasoline scarifiers are the first choice for scarifying larger lawns. 

They also have the advantage that you do not have to pay attention to the power cable. 

As a rule, it will not survive contact with the sharp blades unscathed. 

In addition, petrol scarifiers have the necessary weight, 

especially on heavy, dry ground, to ensure that the blades cut deep enough into the turf.

MSG/Martin Staffler

A scarifier from below: In this Gardena model, the blades are rigidly mounted on a horizontal axle

Electric scarifiers are completely adequate for smaller, easily accessible areas. 

As the units are generally used at most twice a year, 

it is easier to overlook the fact that handling is a little more awkward than with a lawnmower because of the power cable. 

Very light electric scarifiers often tend to "hop" on hard ground, because the blades cannot penetrate the turf. 

Tip: In such a case, simply weigh the machine down with a small sand bag.

Hand-held scarifiers have rigid or slightly oscillating blades. 

They require a great deal of force and are only suitable for small lawns or for treating individual matted areas.

MSG/Bodo Butz

With a hand scarifier you can manually remove felt from small lawns

When should the lawn be scarified?

Basically, you can scarify your lawn from April to September, provided you take proper care of it. However, 

if you use the lawn intensively in the summer months, you should take care of it in spring or late summer, 

because the green carpet needs a few weeks of protection afterwards to regenerate itself. 

The care program at the start of the season begins with spring fertilization. 

In the house garden, you can use the flowering of the daffodils as a good orientation for this. 

As soon as the bulbous flowers have opened their buds, 

the lawn grows again and can make good use of the nutrients supplied. 

Then the green carpet is mowed once at normal height (about four centimeters).

As soon as the second lawn mowing is due, i.e. 

about two weeks after fertilizing the lawn, the time is right for scarifying. 

The grasses are now optimally supplied with nutrients so that the traces of scarifying disappear again within a few weeks. 

Experience in recent years has shown that one should not wait too long before scarifying. 

The month of May is often very warm and dry, so that additional watering of the lawn is necessary afterwards, 

so that the turf can quickly close again.

How to scarify your lawn properly

1 Scarify only dry lawns.

2. adjust the scarifying height correctly. The blades may only scratch the grass surface to a maximum depth of two to three millimetres.

3. mow the lawn to a height of two centimetres before scarifying (lowest setting of the lawn mower).

4. move the machine quickly over the area and do not stop too long in one place, otherwise the sward will be damaged too much.

5. move the machine first in longitudinal and then in transverse paths over the surface so that a fine checkerboard pattern is created.

6. press down the guide rail when changing direction so that the blades are in the air.

7. reseed bare patches with fresh lawn seeds immediately after scarifying.

8. thoroughly rake the loosened lawn felt from the lawn

9. sprinkle a layer of building sand about two centimetres thick on heavy soils after scarifying to improve the air balance of the soil.

The most important questions about scarifying

When do you have to start scarifying your lawn?

If you notice a lot of weeds or if you get stuck with moss and mowing residues when you try to scarify your lawn with a metal rake or cultivator, then it is the right time to scarify your lawn.

When should you scarify your lawn?

You can scarify your lawn from spring to fall, that is, from April to September. However, it is best to scarify your lawn in spring or early fall.

What is the best way to scarify the lawn?

Note that the lawn should be dry when scarifying. The scarifying height must be adjusted so that the lawn is scarified to a maximum depth of three millimetres. The scarifier is moved quickly and as evenly as possible across the lawn, first in longitudinal and then in transverse paths.

What does it cost to scarify your lawn?

The costs depend on which scarifier you use and whether you scarify yourself or leave the work to a landscape gardener. Borrowing a scarifier costs around 15 to 30 euros per day, depending on the machine. In addition, there may also be the cost of lawn seed for reseeding (30-40 cents per square meter) and lawn soil to cover the reseeding. 70 liters of lawn soil cost about 15 euros and are sufficient for 14 square meters. If you hire a landscape gardener for the work, the total cost per 100 square meters of lawn is about 250 to 300 euros.

What do you do after scarifying?

Bald areas in the lawn are sown immediately after scarifying and covered with lawn soil to a height of about 0.5 cm. In autumn, the area should be additionally fertilized with an autumn lawn fertilizer. On heavy soils, some building sand should be spread after scarifying to improve the air balance. It is important to water the lawn well after scarifying, so that the reseeding germinates well and the lawn gaps close quickly.