Patching Bad Spots in Your Lawn

Last summer's record heat in my area wreaked havoc with the lawns in our neighborhood, creating scorched, barren spots of Earth. While mowing my lawn the other day, I noticed that the grass has not grown back. Instead, the bald spots are now growing mold in some areas, while other bald spots are cracked and dry. Next door, Debbie wisely repaired the bald spots of her lawn in early spring, and while her lawn still looks patchy, the bald spots now have new grass growth. I should have followed her lead and patched the bad spots in our yard in early spring.

If you find that you have the same dilemma of bad or bald spots in your lawn, it is never too late to try to correct the problem. Here are some steps I am going to take to correct my lawn problems. You can try them, too, to make your lawn look great:

• Weeds have a knack of growing where nothing else can, so remove all of the weeds from the bald spot, as well as dead grass, rocks, and all other debris.
• Thoroughly water the spot, and then till the dirt to at least six inches.
• Work a thick layer of compost into the soil.
• Make sure that the grass seed you use is the same type of grass as the rest of your lawn. Seed the spot and then tamp the seeds into the soil with the heel of your shoe or the back of a hoe blade.
• Cover the entire spot with straw and water very lightly. When you see new grass growth, resume your normal watering schedule.

Some landscapers advise to lay a board across the patched lawn to ensure that the new grass is level with the rest of the lawn. Leveling the spot is a good idea, since you don't want the ground to dip where the new grass grows, creating a pocket to hold water. You can also sod bald spots, firmly tamping the sod to make firm contact with the soil below. If you've tiny bald patches in your yard, you can plug them with plugs of sod, using a bulb planter. Keep the sod watered thoroughly and watch for new growth to signal that the grass has rooted.