Hi John:
I too am under the same assumption that aeration and dethatching are for two
separate purposes. Unless they think that aerating will poke deep enough
holes thru the thatch to allow beneficial watering, seeding and fertilizing.
Dethatching can stress a lawn but there are different settings in a thatch
machine - My one neighbor dethatched and I see holes in his lawn, my other
neighbor dethatched and his lawn looks fine, he wasn't as aggressive. If
you're sure it's thatch - you will need to rake it or use a machine - then I
would aerate and seed before the hot weather arrives.
Remember - some people think they need to dethatch because they see yellowed
or dead grass "under" their green grass but sometimes it just the grass
"coming back" from the winter - that's what my landscaper said and sure
enough my yellow grass is gone.
Maybe you need another opinion from a landscaper. They need to see your
lawn.

Good luck!
Brandi
"John" wrote in message
...
I'd like to hire a lawn company to take care of my lawn but I seem to be
getting conflicting views from the ones I've talked to. One guy looked at
it and said it needed dethatched. Another who didn't look at it said they
tend not to dethatch because it stresses the lawn too much, they prefer
aeration. I was under the impression that these two treatments served
separate purposes and that each was good for a specific problem. These
guys
make it seem like the two choices are alternate methods to achieve the
same
goal. My lawn is only two years old (Grown from seed) and looks great
from
the street however while mowing I can see many week spots. Straw was used
to cover the seed when it was planted. The straw was never removed, I was
told it would degrade over time. I use a mulching mower which might add
to
the thatch along with the straw that may be remaining. I used a hand rake
in one of the week areas and pulled up a lot of thatch. This leads me to
believe that the thatch is indeed a problem. The question is what is the
best way to deal with it? Thanks very much for any help.

John