Should You Rake Dead Grass? Yes! Here’s How

Small patches of brown grass or overgrown thatch can present several issues for your lawn. If you don’t take care of it, the soil won’t get the water, sunlight, and nutrients it needs to thrive. Many people mow, shovel, rake, and brush dead grass to get rid of it, but are these methods effective or are they doing more harm than good?

You should rake dead grass to let the soil breathe and get direct sunlight, water, and fertilizer. Too much dead grass can make it hard for the soil to provide nutrients. Slowly drag a rake on the dead grass to keep it from pulling out new grass roots. Thatch rakes are ideal.

In this post, we’ll examine why you should rake dead grass on your lawn, how you can effectively clean and remove it, and whether or not it promotes long-term grass growth. We’ll also show you how often you should follow this process and dethatch your lawn.

Do You Need to Rake Dead Grass?

Getting rid of brown grass can make your lawn look and feel much better. The good news is it’s quite simple to manage a lawn’s thatch once you know how to do it. You need to rake dead grass for many reasons, all of which make it last much longer.

Here’s why you should take a dead lawn:

• Raking dead grass lets the soil breathe, providing oxygen. According to SF Gate, raking brown grass makes it much easier for new seeds to grow into healthy roots and grass blades. Oxygen is essential for grass (and all other plants) to survive and thrive. You should follow this suggestion for gardens, lawns, and so on.
• Thatch and brown grass prevents sunlight from penetrating the soil, so raking it is more than ideal. If the soil is shaded, it can get too wet and dark, promoting mildew, mold, and bacterial growth. Your grass will face severe conditions, making it almost impossible to grow another layer.
• Removing dead grass blades lets water soak through. Water often collects on soil and grass blades. If too much of the grass turns into thatch, water droplets collect above the soil and won’t soak into the roots. Before you know it, your whole lawn will be brown and dry.
• Getting rid of brown grass allows fertilizer and other nutrients to reach the soil and roots. Whether or not you’re using fertilizer, there are many nutrients your grass needs to grow. Mulch from mowed grass clippings provides plenty of nutrition, but the soil won’t get the benefits if the nutrients can’t go below the dead grass.

As you could imagine, raking dead grass is an absolute necessity for many lawns. If you want your grass to live long and be full, healthy, and green, this is one of the best actions to take. Read on to know how you can dethatch and clean your lawn annually.

How Do You Clean Dead Grass?

Do you want to reap the previously mentioned benefits to make your lawn in as good of condition as it can be? The first time around can be tedious and requires quite a bit of manual labor, but you’ll get the hang of it. Everything gets easier once you’ve removed the first layer of the thatch. To clean dead grass, follow these steps:

1. Mow your grass to the desired length. The Spruce recommends cutting your lawn down to 2.5 inches for the best results. This length allows the grass roots and soil to breathe while keeping it looking nice and neat. Short grass also makes it easier to remove the thatch and dead grass.
2. Use a thatching rake to pull dead grass and roots to the surface. Thatching rakes, such as the one mentioned above, reach below the top layer of grass to pull thatch, exposed dead roots, and dry, brown grass. Make sure you don’t press or pull too hard since it can damage new grass seeds.
3. Consider a lawn thatcher. The Greenworks 10-Amp Corded Dethatcher comes with steel tines to remove thatch, a foldable handle with ergonomic grips, and a depth knob to determine how deep you pull the thatch and dead grass from. You can also choose models with an extension cord or batteries.
4. Water the grass from edge to edge. Watering the grass after using the thatcher or rake gets rid of excess debris while hydrating healthy grass roots. It’s important to water the lawn after removing dead grass because it’s likely been deprived for quite some time. You could also take this time to add fertilizer.

Once you’re done removing the grass, you’re good to go. This simple process is all you need to do to ensure the only remaining grass is living. If there are weeds on the lawn, review my quick article about how to mow a lawn with weeds.

Does Raking Dead Grass Help It Grow?

Raking dead grass helps it grow because it invites water, nutrients, and sunlight to the soil. It also reduces the thatch layer, making way for new grass seeds, roots, and more. However, don’t rake it too often or you’ll risk damaging fragile living grass blades. You should use a thatching rake or dethatching tool to remove dead grass.

DIY Network claims grass clippings can often contain sixteen nutrients vital to the growth of your lawn. Leaving a bit of mulch is an excellent way to promote healthy grass, but brown grass doesn’t do much. That being said, dead grass is great to use as compost. You can collect it as mulch through a mower or with the aforementioned thatching tools.

How Often Should You Dethatch a Lawn?

Sunset suggests dethatching your lawn once per year to give it enough time to recover. Some thatch is good for your lawn since it protects the roots, but too much can have adverse effects. Many lawns vary, which means you might need to do it more or less than annually. It’s not uncommon to have to dethatch after spring and summer, especially if you have a lot of grass and sunshine in the yard.

So, what should you know about dethatching your lawn on a schedule?

Annual Dethatching Keeps the Grass Healthy

We’ve already covered the countless benefits of dethatching your lawn and removing the dead grass. Your grass and soil need to be cleaned and fed, just like most other plants. Without their basic needs, you can’t expect any type of grass to do well in any conditions.

If you live in an environment with excessive dryness or heat, you should consider watering your grass more often and dethatching it more frequently. Dryness is the enemy of lawns and gardens because it dehydrates the roots and soil, making it nearly impossible for your plants to get everything they need.

Following a schedule makes it easier for you to manage. You soil can’t handle going to waste, revitalizing, and repeating this cycle. It’ll eventually become nutrient deprived, so it’d be best to set a routine once you follow the recommended process mentioned above.

Aerate Your Lawn Regularly

Alongside dethatching, aerating your long brings oxygen to the soil. Scotts shows aerating your lawn every two to three years can yield significant results. We can conclude that annual dethatching, bi-annual aerating, and weekly to bi-weekly mowing is often the best lawn care routine for your grass!

Wrapping It Up

Removing dead grass from your lawn makes it look better and promotes long-term grass. Dead grass isn’t only unsightly, it’s also detrimental for new roots to sprout healthy grass. If you have a dethatcher, it can clean dead grass just as good (if not better than) as a rake.

As long as you dethatch your lawn annually, you shouldn’t face too many troubles with excess dead grass. Good luck!