Thatch Control

What is Thatch?  Thatch is a layer of your grasses runner, stems, rhizomes, stolons. As each growing season comes and goes, a portion of these runners die. Over time, they build up, especially with frequent fertilization.  Normally, with a healthy, productive soil, micro-organisms and a high earthworm population, thatch decomposes easily. Most lawns especially those treated with chemicals & pesticides (Unproductive, sterile soils) will not decompose so thatch builds up.  When the “Thatch Layer” reaches over 1/4 inch, the lawn will have:
1. Severe disease problems
2. Severe Insect problems
3. Discolors easily, with higher watering costs.

Look at the top picture to the right. It shows a chemically treated lawn for 4 years. It has a 1 inch layer of thatch. As the lawns “health” worsened, the chemical lawn service  applied numerous Fungus treatments, aerated the lawn and then “Detached”  the lawn. All at very high costs. They failed, for they were treating  symptoms  and not the cause.  Which was due to;  Unproductive contamination (High Salts build-up in the soil from too much chemical fertilization), low earthworm population and no micro-organisms. The home owner canceled this lawn service and signed up with us. Now look at the lower right picture. Our lawn service effectively produced a beautiful lawn!  How did Healthy & Happy Lawns do it?  With a soil test, reporting, all the “Soil Health Problems:

We treated the lawn with a combination of Organic fertilizers, Soil boosters (Humic Acids) Liquid compost and micro-organisms which made the soil live again.  Earthworm population grew, the thatch build-up was decomposed, the grass became healthier and thicker. The Fungus and insect infestations disappeared! All without expensive seeding, aeration or detaching! This customer now has been using my services for the past 22 years!  Please also see Improving “Poor Soils” and “How Organics Work”.

Contrary to popular belief, Organics are not more expensive, they’re actually cheaper in the long run, not to mention, they’re safer!

Improving Poor Soil

Rarely does anyone have great soil. The newer the house, the poorer the soil. Most soils are clay based and are very compacted.  The Soil test report will tell us everything we need to know about a lawn’s “Soil Health Problems” and the “Grass Health Problems.” Any guessing is eliminated. From this report, we can then make up a lawn care program that’s tailored to the report. Look at the left picture. It first shows a grass that’s been growing in Clay soil with a poor root system. The next grass plug shows a grass that’s been growing in a soil that’s been treated with organics and has a healthy root system. Guess which one will have a beautiful lawn? The Traditional methods used for the past 5 decades to treat poor soils is to:

1. Aerate the soil; With a machine called a “Core Aerator” which essentially, pops holes into the compacted soil to loosen it, and remove “Core”
of soils which will decompose back into the soil to improve it. This method is   very expensive as is very labor extensive.
2. Top dress the entire lawn with Topsoil or compost which will decompose over time back into the soil and because it is very labor extensive. Plus
the cost of the topsoil or compost, is very, very expensive!.

Both of these methods do not work!  “Popping holes” into compacted soils to loosen it, is only temporary. Within weeks the soil will become compacted again!  The “cores” (which leaves an unsightly mess) will not magically change or improve the clay soil at all. Topdressing the lawn with
Topsoil/compost will again only temporarily improve the soil as a 1/4-1/2 inch of soil cannot penetrate very deeply to really improve the soil. (t
his method is very, very messy, and will leave your yard unsightly for many months and the soil may wash away with any heavy rains.

To improve poor compacted clay soils with organics is very simple and inexpensive. From the soil test report we will know how poor the soil is. We  then apply 3 treatments of our soil boosters ( “compost Tea, “Liquid compost) which are  Humic Acids that will loosen the hard pan clay for many months and will add organic matter (which will increase the earthworms which are the true aerators of the soil.) All these treatments combined are at least 1/2 the cost of the traditional methods and will over time, turn the poor soil into a healthy, productive soil.   Only organics can do all this!

Having your lawn treated with organics will be less expensive, and the results will be more permanent. The lawn will be greener, thicker and very healthy.   Only organics are this powerful. Remember, I treated lawns with chemicals for over 10 years before realizing that my Organic lawns were much more healthier & stronger than the chemically treated lawns.  By 1985, I switched all my customers to organic treatments and never looked back.  This was one of the smartest decisions I ever made!