Both aerators and dethatchers are lawn care tools that are useful at different stages of your lawn’s growth. Knowing when to use them and which versions to use can make all the difference if you want a lush, problem-free lawn. Both are good for preventative care, depending on your lawn type, and both aerators and dethatchers can help solve many common lawn issues.
Lawn Aerator vs Dethatcher: How to Choose
When it comes to choosing whether you need to dethatch or aerate your lawn, you will need to keep a few things in mind. This decision relies on the amount of money, time, and effort you want to spend as well as several answers to key questions about your lawn’s health.
For example, are you looking to improve drainage in your lawn? Does your lawn have standing puddles of water and hard ground or does the lawn feel spongy and hold water in the top layer of “thatch”?
Knowing the answers to questions like these, as well as how these two tools work, is key to choosing the right tool, dethatcher or aerator, for the job. Below you can learn more about the ways each tool works and its best applications.
What is an Aerator?
A lawn aerator is a tool or machine that facilitates the aeration of the lawn. This means it cuts or pierces small areas of the lawn so water, fertilizer, and grass seed can be applied. Aeration is also the required treatment to correct a hydrophobic lawn, or a lawn that is so dense water cannot reach the root system.
There are three types of aeration and three types of aerators. First, you have solid tine aeration. This means that solid “tines” or straight sticks of metal are dug into the lawn at regular intervals. This could be done with a spiked roller or a traditional garden fork.
Instead, you could use the much more popular method of hollow tine aeration. This process is sometimes referred to as “coring” your lawn. Hollow tines cut little circular tubes into your lawn. These “cores” can be left on top of the lawn and allowed to decompose. Hollow tine aeration also allows the aeration process to last longer by providing more space for the ground to relax and the plants to expand.
Slit-type aeration doesn’t use tines at all but requires a machine or roller that cuts small slits into your lawn. Sometimes these cuts are straight, though many professional machines make small, curved cuts to prevent the lawn from compacting.
When Should You Aerate Your Lawn?
If your lawn is no longer absorbing water or fertilizer well, or if you plan to overseed, you should plan to aerate your lawn. Next, determine your grass type. You want to aerate your lawn during the peak growing time for your grass type.
For many in the eastern and northern parts of the country, this will mean aerating your lawn in early summer. If you live in an area where winters are mild and warm-season grasses are abundant, you will want to aerate in early spring or late fall.
Aeration should be performed on an established lawn. You may need to repeat this process annually if you have compact or clay soil or every few years if you have more sandy soil under your lawn.
How to Make the Most of an Aerator
While an aerator is an excellent lawn care tool with no preparation, a little forethought can make the experience much easier and more effective.
Dethatch Before You Aerate
As this article is a comparison of the dethatcher and aerator, it may be surprising to learn that dethatching before using an aerator on your lawn can make the aeration process more effective. Removing the layer of thatch can help the aerator reach deeper into the ground, thereby encouraging better root spread and growth.
Water Your Lawn Before Aerating
Before aerating and after dethatching, if you choose to do so, you should always soak your lawn to a depth of at least an inch, if possible, or wait for heavy rain. The water will help the aerator move through the lawn and soil. If you’re using the hollow tine method of aeration, this can also make it easier for the removed plugs to come out of the tines.
Mow Your Lawn
Before you dethatch or aerate, it’s always wise to mow your lawn as usual. Shorter grass helps an aerator, especially a mechanical aerator, dig further into the ground. It also helps a dethatcher to get at the layer of thatch easier.
Water and Fertilize Your Lawn After Aerating
The purpose of aeration is to give your lawn access to more nutrients and water. It is best to water and fertilize your lawn after aerating. Continue to water your lawn to a depth of at least 1 inch for up to 3 days after aeration is done.
Aerator Pros and Cons
Pros
- Aerating helps provide better penetration of water and nutrients into the soil
- There are both manual and machine-assisted methods of aeration
- Aeration can help solve drainage issues and “random” large brown patches in your lawn
- Aerating before application of a treatment to your lawn can reduce waste
- Aeration can help grass develop deeper, broader root systems
Cons
- The cores of hollow-core aeration may not look attractive on a lawn but they do dissipate after about a week
- Aeration is best done during the warmest parts of the year
- All aerators, even machines, may need manual core removal, especially if you have clay soil
- Aerator rental may not be more cost-effective than hiring a lawn care company for aeration purposes, depending on where you live
What is a Dethatcher?
A dethatcher is a light tool that removes thatch from the surface or upper layer of your lawn. Dethatchers can be simple tools, like a heavy yard rake with thin, sturdy tines, or a manual roller. A power tool or machine-type dethatcher, or even a dethatcher attachment for a lawnmower can also make dethatching your lawn easier.
If your lawn is well-established and the thatch is thick enough that these lighter methods don’t seem to be helping, you may need a rake or tool that both cuts and pulls out thatch. For small areas, a specialized vertical cutter or dethatching rake will do. For larger jobs, you may want to consider scarification for your lawn.
When Should You Dethatch Your Lawn?
Dethatching can be done once a year or several times a year. For those in the cooler parts of the country, where cool-season grasses are popular, early spring or fall are good times to dethatch. As thatching can be done with a rake, many people tend to take up this process shortly after raking the leaves from their yards for the first time.
For lawns in the southern half of the country or where warm-season grasses are in use, dethatching should take place in early summer when the grass is in its peak growing season. Regardless of the time of year, you should dethatch if there are issues with thatch buildup unless it is the middle of winter.
How to Make the Most of a Dethatcher
Dethatching can get tricky if there has been heavy rainfall or if this is the first time you have set about dethatching an established lawn.
Get Your Timing Right
As described above, dethatching is best done during the peak season of growth and recovery. You should never dethatch a lawn after the first frost (between late September and early November in the US) and before the last frost (from early March and early May in the US).
Work With a Dry Lawn, If Possible
A dry lawn is easier and less labor-intense to dethatch. Further, using a machine-type dethatcher on a wet lawn may lead to clogs or buildup, reducing its efficiency.
Dethatch After Mowing
The best time to dethatch is on a dry, warm day just after mowing. This ensures you’ll clean up any loose grass clippings and thatch all at once, making the most of your efforts. A dethatcher that attaches to your mower can save time and make this process even easier.
Dethatcher Pros and Cons
Pros
- Dethatching improves light and moisture distribution
- Dethatching can improve the color of your lawn
- Dethatching can discourage insect infestations in the lawn
- Dethatching can reduce sponginess in the lawn
- Dethatching helps prevent the growth of mold, fungus, and bad smells
Cons
- Dethatching is meant to be done on a regular basis and is a light removal of thatch. In some cases, scarification is the better option and requires different equipment
- Most inexpensive dethatching methods, or rake-based dethatching methods, are labor-intensive
Is it Better to Dethatch or Aerate?
The answer to this question, like the answers to many lawn care questions have a lot to do with the type of grass and soil you have. However, it’s also important to note that dethatching and aerating aren’t mutually exclusive.
As noted above, dethatching improves aeration outcomes. For many, having and using both a dethatcher and aerator, even just the manual types, can improve your lawn’s health and prevent many common lawn problems.
Lawn Aerator vs. Dethatcher: Conclusion
Each of these products, the lawn dethatcher and aerator, are solutions to specific problems. For example, if your lawn has thick layers of thatch that have matted down to the point where a light dethatcher or heavy rake cannot pull it up without damaging the grass, an aerator may be the single best tool for the job. If, on the other hand, your grass was cut too long a few times in a row and the thatch is choking out new grass, then regular dethatching is the optimal choice. As your lawn matures, aeration may also be a solution worth looking into.
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