How to Fix Bare Spots in a Lawn

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By Joan Haines
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A beautiful grass lawn!

When your beautiful green lawn is lush and full, it enhances your home. Bare spots in your lawn are unsightly. By repairing the bare spots in your grass, you will restore the beauty of your home.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Depending on the type of bare spot, you may need:
water
aerator
compost or peatmoss
pavers or stepping stones
grass seed

Step 1

Chemical Burn

After a winter of ice, snow, and the scattering of salt and chemical ice melt on adjoining sidewalks and streets, your grass may suffer chemical burn. Possibly, you've spilled gas or herbicide on a spot.

To repair this, you will need to remove several inches of dirt from the affected area. Then, replace that dirt with fresh, unaffected soil. Patch these spots with grass seed or sod. Your lawn will thank you.
Step 2

Dry Conditions

If there's been a drought, you may have lots of bare or dead looking spots on your lawn. Water these areas until it is moist down to 6 to 8 inches. After watering for awhile, stick something like a weeder or trowel down in the dirt to that depth. Take it out, and see if it is wet. That way, you know you've given it a good soak that reaches to the grass roots.
Each week after that, water the bare spots to a depth of 1 inch a few times a week.If this does not produce green grass within a month, reseed the area.
Step 3

Compacted Soil

Sometimes, soil just gets so compact that there is no way, air, water, or fertilizer can reach the roots of the grass there. If you have significant areas of lawn like this, rent an aerator and use it on the bare areas and the entire lawn while you're at it. In each bare area, mix in compost or peat moss, then reseed.
Step 4

Foot Path

Don't try to fight a footpath across your grass. If there's been enough foot traffic on your lawn to make a path, it is a natural path that people like to walk. If you reseed it with grass, people will just trample it down again.

Perhaps the best thing to do is to install attractive pavers or stepping stones along the path. Don't fight it! Go with it!
Step 5

Insects or Disease

Your local cooperative extension service is the best place to get recommendations to combat these lawn problems. Look in your county phone listings to find them.