How to Repair Bare Patches

A beautiful looking lawn is uniform, all the grass has the same growing habit and colour and it adds great aesthetic value to the house. 

If a few bare patches have crept in to your lawn as a result of damage from heat or drought, too much shade, insects, or active kids and pets, it is important to repair them as soon as possible.

Weeds are very easily dispersed and can be particularly tenacious. Once there is a bare patch in your lawn this can be a way for the weeds to creep in and spread. So, it's important to stop this weed invasion before it happens. A dense lawn growth habit helps to repel and crowd out weeds, so patch repair is crucial.

When Australia is lucky enough to get some rainfall, the water can either soak through the lawn and into the soil below or run off into our stormwater systems leading to waterways and beaches. Patchy lawns can allow runoff to carry sediment (soil) into these environmentally important areas. 

If you have a kikuyu lawn, then oversow any bare patches with Munns Professional Pure Kikuyu and if you have a couch lawn, oversow with Munns Professional Couch Blend.
 
If you have a lawn that grows upright, like rye and fescue lawns, then oversow with Munns Professional Sun & Shade or Munns Professional Quick Fix.

For best results, mix your choice of lawn seed with Munns Professional Buffalo and All Lawns Starter Fertiliser. This will encourage the grass to develop a stronger root system, promote green growth and allow the patch to absorb more water for improved early lawn development. 

For Buffalo lawns it is best not to use a different lawn seed to repair the bare patch. We recommend gently aerating the soil to loosen it (add lawn topdressing if required), add some Munns Professional Buffalo and All Lawns Starter Fertiliser to the soil and the area surrounding the patch and rake through. This will help encourage the existing Buffalo lawn to grow into this area. To help speed up the process you can cut off Buffalo runners from elsewhere in the lawn and replant in the bare area. 

Ensure newly sown or replanted patches are kept consistently moist until the new grass has established. 

Always follow the sowing directions on the lawn seed packaging. 

Start by raking the soil in the bare area in straight lines from end to end - creating shallow furrows. For large areas, in a wheelbarrow or large tub, mix your choice of lawn seed with Munns Professional Buffalo & All Lawns Starter Fertiliser. For smaller areas, mix the seed and starter fertiliser in a bucket. 

Evenly distribute all the seed and starter fertiliser mixture over the entire area. Lightly rake the soil in the opposite direction to the furrows to cover the seeds with soil and ensure an even spread.

Throughout the germination period – up to a month depending on the seed variety – the top 1 cm of the soil should be kept moist at all times with a fine spray of the garden hose. This may mean watering 5-8 times a day in drier or windy areas. 

If you've forgotten to add a starter fertiliser at sowing time, then apply Munns Professional Lift Off Lawn Fertiliser to aid establishment and help strengthen the roots.