Great thread and perfect timing lol
Does anyone have suggestions for easily re-planting dead spots in lawns? Thanks
What you'll need:
Iron rake (if it's a large area)
Metal spring rake (if they're small spots, you can use this instead of the iron rake to spread the loam)
Gloves to protect your skin from the fertilizer
If they're small spot(s), then you should go to your local nursery and talk to someone who works there about which soil type and grass seed works best in your area. Pick up a bag of starter fertilizer while you're at it. Make sure you buy enough soil to fill in the affected area and then some.
You're going to want to rake the soil out and blend it into the surrounding grass, making sure to account for the fact that fresh loam will eventually settle and compress after it's been watered or walked on a few times. More is better, as long as you blend it neatly into the surrounding grass. After you do that, sprinkle whichever grass seed you bought over the newly-loamed area (don't go overboard), and then follow it up with a similar amount of starter fertilizer. You can use your hands to do this if the spots are smallish, but you might want to consider investing in a little push seeder if the dead areas are large.
After spreading the loam, seed and fertilizer, grab your spring rake and (lightly!) drag it over the surface of the area you just planted twice, in two different directions. If you're on a hill, rake out the spot with the gradient of the hill the first time, then rake it out horizontally the second time, to hinder water from running down the hill.
Now that you're got your seed planted, fertilized and mixed in with the soil, you need to water it! This is the most important part of planting new seed, and the biggest point of failure for homeowners manually planting seed. You NEED to keep your seed wet for at least three weeks. This might mean watering it multiple times a day for a few weeks straight. Water until the soil looks saturated, like if you add any more water it might start puddling (but before that happens). Just keep watch over your new seed and make sure to give it a drink if it starts looking dry. If you keep your soil moist, your seed will thrive.
Hope this helped.
