Research done by Oregon State University shows that "simply by aerating your lawn you can use 20-30% less water." Aeration is a process of removing plugs or "cores" from a lawn to create passageways in the soil. Dethatching is done with a machine called a turf rake. The turf rake loosens unhealthy debris in lawns such as thatch, moss and pine debris so the debris can be removed creating space for healthy turf growth. Thatch is an accumulation of dead grass that is not decomposing. Dethatching is also referred to as power raking.