To improve our appearance we begin a beauty regiment that starts with exfoliation of the skin. The grass on your lawn is like the skin of your yard, and much like your own skin–it needs to be exfoliated to remain healthy. This process is called scarifying.Scarifying is the removal of the living and dead organic debris, known as thatch that builds up at the base of the grass stems. Follow a few guidelines for scarifying your own grass to produce a healthy, lush lawn.
Inspect your lawn. Look to see how much dead organic material is on the surface of the lawn. A buildup of thatch prevents good air circulation and smothers the grass. It also prevents water and fertilizers from reaching the roots quickly. This causes the grass to dry out, decline in quality, and be more prone to diseases.
Vigorously rake the lawn using a spring-tined rake. Make sure that the tines reach down into the soil surface and gather the dead materials.
Apply a top-dressing. Top dressings improve the texture of the soil.