How to repair a lawn

If your lawn is damaged, neglected or simply not looking its best, don’t despair. There are many ways to repair a lawn suffering from brown or yellowing grass, thinning or bare patches or lumps and bumps. When using even the best cordless lawnmowers seems stressful, it’s high time to do some lawn repairs.

The best repair method for a problematic lawn is first understanding what’s causing the issues and then giving the lawn some much-needed TLC. We’re talking soil preparation, scarification, aeration and sowing new grass seed. If that sounds daunting, we’ve put together a guide that explains all the methods you can use to repair your lawn. We also spoke with David Hedges-Gower, chair of The Lawn Association, and Cassie King at British Garden Centres about their best solutions for lawn repair.

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Why does my lawn need repairing?

“Repairing a lawn involves identifying the underlying cause of the issue”, explains David. “Begin by investigating the reason behind the damage: you’re likely to find that, regardless of the specific problem, many faults need similar corrective measures.”

Common problems with your lawn can include:

• Thinning grass: this could be due to overhanging trees or bushes that block out the sun.
• Worn patches in the lawn: this is often a result of repeated footfall, a pet’s regularly chosen route and children playing outside.
• Boggy, muddy, or overly wet areas of lawn: this could be due to poor drainage or uneven surfaces, allowing excess water to gather.
• Brown patches of grass: this is usually evidence of underwatering – although confusingly, it can also occur due to overwatering. Consistent watering is essential for new grass seed, particularly in the summer when stored moisture is easily lost.

When should I repair my lawn?

The best time of year to repair your lawn is either in spring or autumn, when conditions are cool and damp – though it’s likely that many gardeners will be considering restorative lawn care after continuous rain, cold temperatures and neglect over the winter months.

As Cassie explains: “Over winter, your grass may have gone dormant but is now waking up. If the winter months have been wet, the lawn may be overrun with moss and weeds, or you may be left with some patches in your grass where it has died down over winter.”

Your lawn will also likely need some restorative attention after the summer, when high temperatures and more foot traffic can lead to damaged, dry grass and worn or thinning patches.

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How do I prepare my lawn for repairs?

Repairing your lawn can be time-consuming and labour-heavy, but you don’t have to do it all at once. Breaking up the process into various activities makes it easier to manage.

What do I need to repair my lawn?

The gardening equipment you’ll need includes:

– Gardening gloves
– A lawn scarifier or a rake
– An aerator or garden fork
– A lawn mower
– A watering can or hose

You’ll also likely need grass seed, lawn fertiliser and fresh topsoil or compost.

How to repair a lawn

Firstly, investigate your lawn thoroughly by checking for worn patches, invasions of moss or weeds and identifying how much of the original grass is still present. Mowing your lawn approximately one inch high will also help reveal the weeds and moss. If you plan to remove weeds with weed killer, wait three weeks before you sow any new grass seeds.

Scarify the lawn

“Scarification is essential for removing dead organic material from your lawn”, David tells us. “It allows existing grasses to breathe or creates a suitable seedbed for introducing grass species that thrive better.”

By scarifying your lawn, you’ll remove the top layer of dead, brown grass (known as thatch) along with any moss and weeds. Cassie explains: “If you have weeds in your lawn, they will compete for nutrients and moisture with healthy grass, so make sure that they are uprooted as soon as possible to allow the grass to breathe.”

The best method is using a lawn-scarifying rake: it goes deeper than raking by cutting grooves into the turf and the soil below. You can also use a spring tine rake to achieve the same results, but be careful not to be too rough. It’s good to leave a little thatch behind, too, as it helps to protect the lawn.

Aerate the lawn

“Wet soils are more susceptible to compaction, which means water won’t drain, which can often lead to fungal diseases in your lawn”, said Cassie. Aerating your lawn involves perforating the soil with small holes to allow air, water and nutrients to penetrate the grass roots. This process helps alleviate soil compaction, allowing the roots to grow deeper and stronger.

“This can be done with a garden fork, spiked shoes or a hollow tine aerator. Simply make small holes about four to five inches deep and repeat every six inches across the garden. This will let carbon dioxide and oxygen circulate, and send water and nutrients down into the lawn’s root zone.”

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How do I repair brown or yellow grass?

Brown or yellow grass is a strong indicator of insufficient water, meaning it’s a common sight in the summer months. Luckily, grass is surprisingly resilient and can recover from turning brown, usually taking a few weeks once the weather cools and there’s more rainfall. To hurry the process along, you can try the following:

• Be mindful of your mowing schedule, mowing less often and with a raised cutting height to encourage deeper rooting.
• Mulch your grass clippings back into the lawn to increase moisture content – a mulch lawn mower is perfect.

How do I reseed bare and thinning patches of grass?

If you have bare or damaged patches in the lawn, the best solution is to reseed those areas with new grass seed. To do this, spread the grass seed over the prepared soil with either your hand or a seed spreader and gently rake it in. Roll the soil gently by pressing down with your feet until there’s a light covering of soil above the new seeds. Finally, water your new seeds with a rain-like shower from your hose or watering can.

If the lawn is patchy all over, it’s better to simply reseed the entire lawn rather than working on individual patches. We’ve written at length about how to seed a lawn and how to choose the right grass seed here, too.

Alternatively, you can lay a piece of turf over the problem patch, which can either be cut from another part of the lawn or purchased as new turf. For this method, you’ll need to cut around the edges of your damaged patch, dig beneath the damage and lift it as a layer. Prepping the soil is crucial to ensure you’ll be laying new turf down on a suitable base: lightly dig it over, work in some new topsoil and firm it down before laying the new turf on top and firming that down, too.

It’s worth noting that laying down a new piece of turf is the quicker method, but it’s much more expensive than sowing grass seeds from scratch.

Fertilise, then water the lawn

Once all your repairs are complete, it’s time for lawn fertiliser. David explains: “Feeding the lawn is crucial after any renovation or repair work. Grasses undergo stress during these periods, so providing quality plant food ensures their optimal health.”

Cassie adds that using lawn feed in the spring “encourages strong new, dark green growth, ready for increased use over the summer.”

Importantly, any reseeded areas of lawn need to stay damp for the first few weeks. Depending on the time of year, this may mean watering lightly one to three times each day. For young lawns, make sure not to overwater as this can cause shallow rooting – a sprinkler is ideal for providing adequate water.

Mow the grass

While it may seem counterintuitive for those dealing with a thinning or bare lawn, mowing the grass is actually a fantastic way to help bring the lawn back to life and grow thicker. Cassie tells us: “Once your lawn has had a few weeks of new growth, you can give it its first mow of the year – as long as the weather isn’t wet or frosty.”

New growth that’s reached a height of around 10cm is ready for mowing, as it will be hardy enough to cope with being cut.