How to Fix Dead Spots in Your Lawn

An attractive lawn with lush green grass is every homeowner's dream. But high traffic, excessive exposure to the sun, lawn diseases or pests can cause dead grass or brown spots in your lawn. If you enjoy home improvement projects, fixing dead grass is one of the easiest and most fulfilling activities you can undertake. Follow the procedure below to restore life to your lawn.

• If the brown spots in your lawn do not respond to mowing and watering, you need to replace them. Fall is one of the best times to reseed your lawn as it gives time for the seeds to grow well during the cool days of the year.

• Firstly identify all the dead spots in your lawn. Remove thatches formed by grass roots and debris using a heavy duty broom rake - this will show hidden dead spots clearly. To fix dead grass spots, rake the brown spots to loosen and pulverize the soil. Loosen the soil to a depth of about ½'.

• Add fertilizers to the soil in the dead zones and rake the area level. Add peat moss or gypsum to the soil to keep it loose.

• Use good quality grass seeds for reseeding the treated areas of your lawn. Make sure the seeds are well suited to the climate in your area and ideal foe the amount of sunlight or shade your lawn provides. You may cool the seeds in your refrigerator prior to seeding - this will ensure a high rate of germination.

• Sprinkle the seeds in the desired areas. Make sure they are covered by a thin layer of soil. Spray water to keep the area moist.

• You can cover the seeded area with polythene sheets to trap moisture for long periods of time - this helps speedy germination of the seeds. Periodically check underneath the polythene sheets for seedlings to appear. When you see the seedlings, get rid of the sheets as they will interfere with availability of fresh air and sunlight.

• Keep the soil moist by regularly watering the dead spots until the grass is about 1" tall. Then, water once 3-4 days to keep the grass healthy and growing.

• You may also fix your dead spots with grass sod that you can purchase from nurseries. Ensure that your sod is larger than the area you want to cover. Rake the dead spot and create a recess in which the sod can be placed. You can add some fertilizers to the soil before placing the sod. Gaps around the sod and the ground may be filled with potting soil.

Once you patch the dead grass in your lawn, maintain it well by regularly watering it, providing fertilizers and aerating the soil a couple of times a year.