Talk to your dry cleaner about their expectations for the results of the treatment before you decide to go ahead. Completing scarification, aeration, overseeing and top dressing is often sufficient to bring a lawn back to life. For this article we visited the most celebrated leather jacket company in the United States, Schott NYC, and met with the founder’s great grandson Jason Schott.

There are two application windows in the pests life cycle suitable for applying a leatherjacket treatment. Do not attempt to soften your leather jacket by putting it in the washing machine, you will irreparably damage the leather and almost certainly shrink the jacket.

A leather jacket can be folded but it is best avoided if possible because keeping a leather jacket folded for long periods will cause creases. To increase the effectiveness of your nematode treatment, we always advise you spike and scarify the lawn before application. From the tools you’ll need to the techniques for removing grime and restoring the leather’s natural oils, we’ve got you covered. The product requires taking a little care to mix it in the correct proportions and then use a watering can with a coarse rose. Remember a few paragraphs ago that I mentioned the importance of water to the first life stage of leatherjackets?

When you tug on the blades, the plant will come away from the soil all too easily and there will be barely any root on the bottom of the plant.Both water and heat will have the effect of drying natural oils from the leather, causing it to crack or wrinkle. It’s recommended to test the conditioner on a small, inconspicuous area of the jacket before applying it to the rest of it. Leave it at least overnight and then when you lift it in the morning they should all be sitting on the soil surface. I was well into my career as a journalist in New York City before I finally realized that grown men don’t walk around town in sneakers and, when it’s a little rainy, rubber galoshes.

Leatherjackets overwinter in the soil and can be present from February, or even earlier in certain weather conditions. It may be necessary to water the lawn before and after application to ensure the soil is sufficiently moist for nematode activity and survival. If possible, choose leather which has been vegetable tanned, which is a lengthier tanning process but one which uses far fewer chemicals. It’s gonna stand up better against the rain in the future, and it’s going to be less prone to tears. This can be used on all leather types, but go gently if using on Aniline and Nappa prouducts, and wash the Magic Sponge in warm water after use.If your lawn has suffered severely from Leatherjacket damage, and the number of Leatherjacket larvae within the soil is high, multiple applications of nematodes will be required to gain overall control. There are plenty of leather colourant kits available which will enable you to dye a jacket, but the results are not 100% guaranteed. These insects are part of healthy balanced ecosystems, most feed on decomposing organic matter or algae and some are predatory.