The Grass Doctor

After my party in early August, I need to get my lawn back. A guy from Lowe's gave the advice below. Agree?

After party: activate underground sprinkler system (1 hour/day) dethatch with rental aerate with rental roll with rental reseed with Penn State mix of rye, fescue, blue grass starter fertilize mushroom composite over top to lightly cover month to come in fully lime in fall winterizer fertilizer late fall After party: activate underground sprinkler system (1 hour/day) dethatch with rental aerate with rental roll with rental reseed with Penn State mix of rye, fescue, blue grass starter fertilize mushroom composite over top to lightly cover month to come in fully lime in fall winterizer fertilizer late fall ADDITIONAL CLARIFICATION DETAILS: I currently have a thatch problem. Penn State is most likely a local brand (I'm in Pittsburgh). Penn State is also nationally renowned for its agriculture school. This Lowe's doesn't rent any of the suggested equipment or the mushroom composite - I trusted I wasn't getting a sales pitch, I just want to make sure the information sounded correct. Additional thoughts or comments are appreciated. Thanks! ADDITIONAL CLARIFICATION DETAILS: I currently have a thatch problem. Penn State is most likely a local brand (I'm in Pittsburgh). Penn State is also nationally renowned for its agriculture school. This Lowe's doesn't rent any of the suggested equipment or the mushroom composite - I trusted I wasn't getting a sales pitch, I just want to make sure the information sounded correct. Additional thoughts or comments are appreciated. Thanks!

Public Comments

1. He's a good salesman! What shape is the lawn in now, what species are you growing, and what are you doing at the party and how long to beat up the lawn? I'm assuming you've got a pretty ordinary lawn, and you're not interested in keeping it at golf-course groomed state, just green and not a weedy mess. Dethatching is rarely needed on lawns -- a certain amount of thatch that is protective for the lawn. See: http://urbanext.illinois.edu/lawntalk/lawntalk15.html Me, I'd probably water deeply and well -- but not often-- up to about the week before the party, and then reduce watering so the grass blades are plump but the soil is barely damp at the surface for the party. Resume deep watering after the party, and evaluate for soil compaction. Consider core aeration fall, and continue normal fertilization and liming for your conditions. Overseeding shouldn't be necessary on a lawn that's in good shape and you haven't used for a soccer field or mudwrestling.
2. I totally disagree: sounds to me like he wants you to rent and buy stuff. First, what type of grass do you have? That's the type you want to seed with. Fescue does well in cooler climates in the winter, rye gets really green and beautiful, but then dies back looking horrible. Scott's Turf Builder is a good brand to seed with, I've never HEARD of Penn State.What you need when reseeding is uniform dirt, with the debris raked up; the seed spread with a spreader, to put hay over the whole thing lightly, and then to water it for about 1/2 to an hour in the twilight hours so the soil retains its moisture. Do NOT walk on the area [this assumes its all dirt]. The hay is to keep birds from eating the seed. Rake up the hay after the grass is about an inch tall, or the hay will seed itself, and you'll have funky looking weeds. For a thicker lawn find a book called "Backyard Problem Solver" by Jerry Baker. He has all sorts of tips on growing a great lawn, and other things as well.