Patchy lawns damaged by summer heatwaves and droughts can be restored with three simple steps shared by a gardening expert. September is an ideal time for this maintenance before colder, wetter conditions arrive.
Why lawns are patchy
Rising temperatures across the country left many gardens with dry, patchy grass, and in some extreme cases, dead turf. The month of September offers a chance to rectify unsightly patches before autumn sets in.
Gardening expert and TikTok creator Ish recently shared his simple guide to fixing patchy lawns in a video. He noted that while patches may be annoying, they are actually incredibly easy to fix, meaning the lawn can return to its former glory quickly.
Step-by-step lawn repair
Ish explained there is “no real rocket science” to fixing lawns, but there are a few vital steps every gardener can follow. He starts by giving the brown patches a decent rake to pull away any remaining spent grass.
The pulled-up grass and earth can be kept and used as mulch for the lawn later on, and even for some plants and flowerbeds in the garden. Gardeners should continue to rough up the patches so fresh soil comes to the surface, being careful not to rake too deep into the ground.
“What you’re doing is that you’re creating loads of little channels,” Ish said.
Seeding and watering
The next step is to add lawn seed to the patches. Ish said: “Now that you’ve channeled all those little grooves in, all you’ve got to do is just simply spread the lawn seed over. It really is that simple.”
“And if you’ve got a little bit of that extra mulch that you pulled up, you can put it on the top if you want to protect it from birds if need be, but otherwise, I’ve done this on a rainy day, meaning this pretty much waters itself, and I can just go in and have a cup of tea,” he added.
No seed spreader is needed for the job; the seed can be applied directly to the ground by hand. If rain is not on the forecast, gardeners should give the patches a generous amount of water to help the lawn seeds spring into action.
Ish concluded: “So it just goes to show it’s not rocket science. If your lawn is looking a bit patchy, simply rake it over, give it a good spread and water it in. As a result, your lawn will be back to normal.”
