Too late to dethatch Couch/Bermuda lawn in Auckland? Tips for first scarify
Hi team, just wondering if it’s now too late to get a dethatch done on my lawn with temperatures plummeting. I’m based in Auckland and I have couch / Bermuda grass which hasn’t had a dethatch in years, so it’s well overdue. Grass mostly gets adequate sun for the best part, but there are shady patches here and there. Also any other tips for dethatching? I’ve got a Makita 40v scarifier, brand spanker…
Yeah it's too late now. Couch is heading into dormancy as soil temps drop and once it's stopped growing it won't recover from a hard scarify. You'd end up with bare ground through winter and a heap of poa annua and broadleaf weeds filling those gaps before the couch wakes up again. Best timing for couch dethatching in Auckland is late spring through early summer, October to December. The couch is in full growth at that point so even a hard scarify is back to a tidy lawn within three or four weeks. You can be aggressive with couch when it's actively growing, it loves it. Water and feed straight after. NZLA All Seasons N+ pushes recovery, and a foliar of NZLA Charger a week or two later helps the lateral growth come back fast.
Epic thanks KJ, glad I didn’t get stuck in without asking! Great response, thanks again