Scarifying is the vertical cutting or scoring of the soil and the grass roots with special appliances, such as the powerful VIKING lawn scarifier.

Scarifying should be performed in late spring, when the soil is dry and it is a little warmer (over +10 °C). Warning: Hot spells can occur as early as May – do not scarify under such warmer conditions.

Scarifying can also be performed in late summer, but with less intensity. The lawn can still make a good recovery and is then fortified for the winter break.

Step 1 of 3: soil before scarifying

Step 2 of 3: scarifying procedure

Step 3 of 3: soil after scarifying

After scarifying, it is beneficial to perform sanding and fertilisation. Resowing with an appropriate seed mixture is only necessary in the case of large bare patches.

Helpful tips:

• Work under dry weather conditions.
• Mow normally before scarifying, not too short (2-3 cm).
• Test the depth setting of the lawn scarifier on an unproblematic area.
• Do not scarify too deeply the first time, just ‘comb’ the surface.
• The scarified material must be removed from the lawn surface (lawn mower with grass catcher box).
• The scarified material can be sucked up using a VIKING lawn mower.