DETHATCH your Centipede or St. Augustine lawn? | Reasons for thatch issues

[@James-yc7fc]

Thanks for the content. You're really the only person covering centipede. Strange since it's such a widespread grasstype.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Thanks! Yeah that is weird that there isn’t much info out there. I noticed that last year and thought I’d start the channel. Thanks for watching!

[@danmiller7709]

Yes!

[@Broskibrother]

I have dethatched centipede before with a pull behind dethatching rake on a lawn tractor. The lawn had so much thatch in it, that it was actually preventing the centipede from filling in completely. This is a lawn we maintain, but it is not our full time residence so it gets mowed every 2 or 3 weeks when we get the chance. I believe this is the cause of the dense thatch layer. I ended up pulling out 5 full trash cans worth of thatch from a 12,000 square foot lawn. The centipede was pretty severely stunted for a month or two but by mid summer it looked the thickest and best it's ever been. So I think you can dethatch centipede, if you have an extreme thatch layer and know that it will look worse before it looks better.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Thanks for sharing, that is a great point

[@Broskibrother]

@@CentipedeCentralLawnCare thanks for the reply! and yes it is not ideal but in our case the thatch was very extreme. regular mowing should prevent that much buildup lol

[@sangueguerriero9538]

Yes your right. I used a Thatcher attachment to my lawn. It torn out my centipede grass. More damage than good. It's better to do it manually with a specific rake for it.

[@onthelawntraining5205]

Great content 💚💚 very informative and something I've been looking into. Thanks for the help 👍🏽

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Thank you sir!

[@PatrickWitherow]

I put 1 piece of St. Augustine sod in a spot where for some reason my centipede would not grow into. I'm amazed at how fast St. Aug spreads. I keep an eye on it and I'm seeing several stolons branching out over a foot or more in just a few weeks time. Hoping this will take over some dead/thin areas that the centipede doesn't like.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

That’s interesting! I know St Aug likes Nitrogen more than Centipede and the stolons can be thicker... more shade tolerant too!

[@Thisishard2333]

I hand rake.And you get quite a bit of thatch. I also bag my grass when I cut every week.My neighbor cuts every other week. Mulching blade. Tons of thatch at the beginning of the next season

[@robzzzzzz1]

I’ve done it this year because there is always some matted grass underneath my grass and me being a newbie it’s the only way I thought to get rid of it I also used liquid aerator

[@robzzzzzz1]

I have a big thatch problem it’s always there and I keep raking it up so I will try the liquid product you spoke of

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

The liquid aerator is really just a soil penetrant so water can penetrate deeper. The liquid dethatch will do a better job at feeding the microbes 🦠 so they can eat the thatch.Thanks for watching!

[@timothybrady1174]

How do you combat mowing at 1.5 inches when your lawn is uneven. Even at about 2.5 to 3 inches I get some significant scalping in some areas.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

That’s interesting, do you have a big riding mower? If so, the cut on those is less forgiving because the deck is so large. Can’t get into the dips like a standard rotary push mower. Which do you have?

[@timothybrady1174]

@@CentipedeCentralLawnCare it's a riding mower with a 42" deck. I just recently moved to it and I am torn because it is a HUGE time saver. I'm hoping in the coming year or top I may do my best to get the lawn level. Still trying to figure out the how though.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Yeah if I had a big deck like that I would definitely not be able to mow at 1.5” without some scalping. I have some bumps and uneven spots all over the place. Leveling would definitely help you.

[@TheR00k1e2]

@@CentipedeCentralLawnCare I also have issues with scalping if I were to try to cut my centipede any shorter. I’m using a regular push mower. This might be a goofy question. When it’s said to keep the grass 1.5”-2” tall, is that as simple as measuring the distance from the mower blade to a hard surface below? For reference, I’m cutting my centipede with my mower’s height set to 3. If I try mowing on 2, it scalps the lawn. And I did measure on a flat surface to be sure, 2 does put the blade 2” from the surface. And 3 puts it 3”. I appreciate any advice.

[@chrisk5271]

Great video. Huge improvement with those empty pauses.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Thank you sir!

[@johnhairfield849]

Chicken feed crumbles is an organic supplement for your soil & feeds microbes also as you mentioned too much nitrogen but more so the type of nitrogen being used .

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Interesting, I’ve heard of that, thanks for the feedback. Yes an organic source of N would be much more beneficial to prevent thatch

[@loganfowler7987]

Great Stuff! I enjoy all your videos Different topic, but I was thinking about renting a core/plug aerator. I'm sure there will be some damage to the stolons but probably not as bad. Thoughts?

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Thanks, yes core aeration is very beneficial to get the air/water down. Correct, you will have a little damage but it should fill in quickly since you are improving the airflow and soil.

[@noy-z]

Great! I watched this video right after using an electric dethatcher on my lawn. I hope I didn’t cause too much damage. Would it be wise to use a liquid dethatcher also? I only did one pass so there’s still a bit of thatch remaining.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Sure you could do a liquid as well but it probably won’t do much good until the temps get much warmer

[@noy-z]

@@CentipedeCentralLawnCare Thanks for the response! Ok, I’ll wait until it gets warmer. I’m really glad you’re providing this information. I never knew centipede grass could be so particular and that I’ve been doing everything I could to ruin my yard lol

[@GingerAleDude]

I don’t think I have a thatch problem but was thinking of simply raking, would that accomplish much?

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

That’s fine as long as you aren’t too rough with it. I did some raking early this spring to get some dead debris out.

[@carolfutch8534]

I'm new to your channel, YAY! I know that you mentioned not to dethatch but is it ok to aerate? I aerated my established centipede at my previous residence and it improved the lawn drastically that desperately needed some TLC. Thank you so much! I love the channel and the information given.

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Absolutely! Aeration is the best way to get air, water and nutrients down into the root zone and also reduce soil compaction. Thanks for watching!

[@carolfutch8534]

@@CentipedeCentralLawnCare You're so welcome and thank you so much again!

[@billymccarthy1266]

Great information as always. Any suggestions to control field Bermuda in Centiped lawn? Thank you very much!

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

I have read that Southern Ag makes a product called Grass Killer with Vantage that works well for eradicating Bermuda from centipede grass. Although I would be very careful and follow the label very closely. I haven’t tried it myself but I would be a little cautious with causing damage.

[@samuelokelly4941]

What are the liquid products you recommend ? I ordered the Anderson’s 16-0-8 product you recommended in another video thank you

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

I have used Urban Farm Liquid Lawn and it was great. Really high quality ingredients. I have also used Nature’s Lawn 14-0-7 which also has great ingredients. I may do a video on liquids. Thanks

[@samuelokelly4941]

Can I use the liquid detach you recommended at the same time I use the Anderson’s 16-0-8 or how far apart can I apply ?? Your videos are so helpful thank you so much !!

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Sure those can be applied one right after the other

[@samuelokelly4941]

I ordered the urban farm thank you Question I have some dark brown spots in my lawn looks like someone poured gasoline on it any idea what that is ?? Thanks for all your help the Anderson’s worked really well !!

[@Cmass9]

I’m in a transition zone and want to overseed tttf instead of existing centipede. Will dethatching allow the tttf to take over and kill off the centipede?

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Not sure if that would work. I don’t think it would necessarily kill the centipede. You’d probably have to deal with mixed grasses if nothing is done to kill it off

[@Cmass9]

@@CentipedeCentralLawnCare thanks for the reply! Sounds like I may need to start from scratch.

[@raquelwhite7828]

Hi. Can you give the recommended liquid dethatching products. Sorry I dont see them in the comments 😊

[@CentipedeCentralLawnCare]

Check the description of the video. I think they should be there

[@kevinmotley7334]

Thanks, good info

[@FoxtrotCorpin]

thank you!