I think I joined the club

Didn’t expect to get this far so fast, but I’m pretty happy with it. I’ve never seen footprints in grass like this, except in YouTube videos. I haven’t used my striper yet, but I think it’ll be worth it when I do.

I should have aerated but didn’t get to it. Instead, I scalped and dethatched at the lowest setting, going back and forth to really break up the old grass and top layer. I leveled it with 2 yards of topsoil, and it turned out pretty decent. I added extra on the right side to fix a dip, and I think it worked well.

This is for 2500 sq ft, including the tree lawn. I used 20.5 pounds of seed (weighed with my Harbor Freight bucket), 90 pounds of Milorganite, and starter fertilizer right before seeding. I bought 2 yards of compost, used about 1.5, and spread it over the seed, using my truck’s lights to keep working at night.

My kid helped out with dethatching…definitely a bonus.

I included a “before” photo. Grass didn’t really grow around the light post or the tree lawn before. The seed is Twin City Obsidian ryegrass.

Dethatching has become a popular topic in lawn care, thanks to creators on platforms like YouTube. This has led to some misunderstandings about it. A user has made this automatic comment to clear up some of those myths.

Thatch is the layer of stems and roots, both living and dead, that sits on top of the soil. Grass clippings are not thatch and do not add to thatch. The thickness of thatch can only be checked by digging into the soil.

A bit of thatch can be good. While some sources say that under 1 inch of thatch is beneficial, most agree that half an inch is ideal. Thatch helps in various ways like preventing weeds, handling traffic, and insulating against heat and moisture loss. It shouldn’t be removed unless necessary. If you have more than half an inch, it may not need removal, but you should look into the causes. If there is an inch or more of thatch, it should be addressed. Dethatching as a routine task, instead of addressing a real thatch issue, is not helpful. Again, a little thatch is good.

Thatch problems are not very common. Too much thatch usually indicates other issues, such as over-fertilization, overwatering, regular fungicide use, heavy insecticide use, pH issues, and the presence of certain grasses like weedy varieties.

Dethatching with a flexible tine dethatcher can seriously hurt your lawn in both the short and long term and can encourage some weedy grasses to spread. In rare cases, that kind of damage might be necessary, but it should always be followed by seeding.

A better way to deal with excessive thatch is core aeration. Core aeration doesn’t remove much thatch and therefore doesn’t harm healthy grass significantly. But it can help speed up the natural breakdown of thatch.

Verticutters and scarifiers are also less harmful than flexible tine dethatchers.

For overseeding, less destructive options include slit seeding, scarifying, manual raking, or using a tool like a Garden Weasel. Check out the seeding guide here.

Also, make sure to check the list of causes above so you don’t fall into those traps.

You have your son outside helping you. You’ve already succeeded.

Teo said:
You have your son outside helping you. You’ve already succeeded.

This comment is underrated.

Remington said:

Teo said:
You have your son outside helping you. You’ve already succeeded.

This comment is underrated.

Best comment here.

Not sure about the language here… but the tequila tells me it’s alright. Nice work my guy. Just need to tidy up the edging, but I’m jealous of your lawn! 10/10

Hart said:
Not sure about the language here… but the tequila tells me it’s alright. Nice work my guy. Just need to tidy up the edging, but I’m jealous of your lawn! 10/10

The edging has always been a challenge. I have an edger, but the ground was so flat and unhealthy that I was basically just digging a mini trench along the edge since there wasn’t much to cut. I built it up a bit to help, and once the grass is mature, I think I’ll have something to work with.

Thanks a lot. I can’t wait for it to darken into its true form.

You’re a member now, bud. Your lawn looks amazing!

Make sure to water a lot after all that hard work.

Remington said:
Make sure to water a lot after all that hard work.

I was going to, but I soaked up the rain from the hurricane recently, which helped save me some work. But it will be my turn to water again soon.

Nice job and great help you had there. Enjoy that beer while looking at your hard work.

You drive the mower to the side like I did when my park strip was just dirt and weeds. I hated walking through that mess.

Wilder said:
You drive the mower to the side like I did when my park strip was just dirt and weeds. I hated walking through that mess.

Yeah, I was getting blasted, with dust coming from everywhere since it was all dry dirt. I was in vacuum mode, so I had to deal with it. But it paid off in the end.

Looks fantastic. I suggest you find a different nitrogen source than Milorganite, since 90 lbs came with a lot of phosphorus. Plus the high phosphorus in starter fertilizer and the phosphorus naturally in compost, you might have enough phosphorus for a long time. If your soil test shows extreme phosphorus deficiency, ignore this.

@Sage
I used the Milorganite for the whole seed spreading since I soaked them first. I had a soil test last year before I gave up because I didn’t know what to do, and my phosphorus was 13 out of a recommended 30-45, so I think I’m good. You made a good point though; I didn’t consider all those added together. It’s like a lifetime treatment.

Annual or perennial rye?

Ira said:
Annual or perennial rye?

Perennial rye. I’m in northern Ohio.

Wyatt said:

Ira said:
Annual or perennial rye?

Perennial rye. I’m in northern Ohio.

Great! I was hoping all that effort went into grass that would come back next year! Enjoy it, and do a soil test!