How to repair bare patches in a lawn
Updated: October 2026
You are looking at a brown scar after a dry August, a worn goalmouth, or the corner the dog uses every evening, and the packet is already in the shed. How to repair bare patches in a lawn comes down to bare, moist soil and a light cover. The name on the box will not rescue seed that sits on thatch, dries in a warm week, or gets taken by pigeons. This guide is from the Products Compared editorial team, updated on 16 October 2026, using Royal Horticultural Society lawn pages. It is not a laboratory trial. Choose the mix on our [lawn repair seed comparison](/hub/seeds-and-plants/lawn-repair-seed), then follow the steps here.
You are looking at a brown scar after a dry August, a worn goalmouth, or the corner the dog uses every evening, and the packet is already in the shed.
You are looking at a brown scar after a dry August, a worn goalmouth, or the corner the dog uses every evening, and the packet is already in the shed. How to repair bare patches in a lawn comes down to bare, moist soil and a light cover. The name on the box will not rescue seed that sits on thatch, dries in a warm week, or gets taken by pigeons. This guide is from the Products Compared editorial team, updated on 16 October 2026, using Royal Horticultural Society lawn pages. It is not a laboratory trial. Choose the mix on our lawn repair seed comparison, then follow the steps here.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Role in the sow | Germination line | Pack | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Miracle-Gro Miracle-Gro EverGreen Fast Grass, 480 g | Small sunny repair | 4 day claim | 480 g | 8.9 | about £7.67 | View offer |
| Best value |  Westland Gro-Sure multi-purpose lawn seed, 10 m² | Bird-deterrent dressing | High germination claim | 300 g | 8.9 | about £7.00 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Miracle-Gro Miracle-Gro Patch Magic, pack of 2 | Coir and binder on slopes | n/a | 2 kg mix | 8.5 | about £24.00 | View offer |
On this page
Sow when the soil is mild and damp
Spring and early autumn are the reliable windows. The soil wants to be mild and damp. The RHS October lawns page treats about 7°C as a late-season floor in milder districts. If the ground feels cold and stays wet, leave the packet closed. Seed is more likely to rot, and that page flags fusarium on lawns that stay damp into autumn.
A heatwave is the other common failure. Reviews across these listings blame dry heat and birds more often than the brand. Four-day wording describes a possible start, not a finished patch. If a hosepipe ban or temporary use restriction applies, do not water through it. This page has not checked a live ban for your postcode. When you cannot keep the surface moist, wait for a damper spell.
Open the soil and cover the seed
Cut out damaged turf to about 5 cm, fork the base, and add topsoil or compost. Firm it, then sow at the packet rate. Where the packet is silent, the RHS gives about 15–25 g per square metre. Cover the seed lightly and water with a fine rose so you do not wash it into a heap at the edge.
A circle about 30 cm across is closer to a dinner plate, so a full square-metre dose on that circle is far too thick. On a slope, rain moves loose seed downhill. If you are still choosing a coir tub or a bag of seed, the patch kit or loose seed guide separates those jobs.
Some Gro-Sure listings mention a bird-deterrent dressing. This page relies on a cover. Gardens Illustrated describes mixing the seed into the top dressing so pigeons lose interest. Horticultural fleece is the RHS alternative. Peg it, and lift it once the shoots are through.
Keep it moist, then leave it alone
Water with a fine rose so the surface stays moist without puddles. Lawnsmith suggests light watering at least twice a day for two weeks in dry weather. Use the fine rose as the default, and treat the twice-daily routine as Lawnsmith’s advice for a dry spell. If a restriction applies, sow later.
Leave the patch alone. Footsteps or a football shear roots that are only a few millimetres long. Packet rates sit in the lawn repair seed buying guide. The first cut waits until seedlings are about 5–7.5 cm. Mow with the blades set high, then firm the area lightly. Get a professional if the brown area spreads in mild, wet weather, the patch stays sodden, or a second sow fails on rubble or a fuel spill.
The sequence that decides the result
Open the soil, sow at the packet rate, cover the seed and keep the surface moist with a fine rose. Stay off the patch until the seedlings are about 5–7.5 cm, then cut high. If you cannot water, or the soil is cold and wet, leave the packet closed until the next mild window.
Common questions
When in the year should I sow lawn seed in the UK?
Sow in spring or early autumn, when the soil is mild and damp. The RHS October lawns page puts a late-season floor at about 7°C in milder districts, so a sheltered lowland garden can still be sown in October. Cold, wet soil makes rot more likely. Compared with September in the same garden, October leaves seedlings less time to root before winter. If you cannot water during a dry spell, wait.
Do I have to dig the bare patch out?
Cut out damaged turf when the surface is thatch or dead grass. The RHS repairing-lawns sequence says to remove it to about 5 cm, fork the base, add topsoil or compost, and firm it before sowing. Seed on a dry mat has little contact with soil, which is why those patches stay brown. A dinner-plate scar does not need a whole border dug out. If the packet gives no rate, the usual RHS range is about 15–25 g per square metre.
How do I stop birds taking grass seed without a deterrent dressing?
Cover the seed. Mix it into a thin layer of topsoil or compost, or peg horticultural fleece over the patch until the shoots appear. Gardens Illustrated describes that cover as the way to make pigeons lose interest. Some Gro-Sure listings mention a bird-deterrent dressing, and you can still sow successfully by covering the seed. Fleece needs pegs, because a loose sheet blows off and the birds return the same afternoon.
How often should I water new grass seed?
Keep the surface moist with a fine rose. The RHS presents that light watering as the basic method. Lawnsmith suggests light watering at least twice a day for two weeks in dry weather, and that heavier routine is Lawnsmith’s. Skip both if a hosepipe ban or temporary use ban applies where you live, and delay the sow. A fine rose matters because puddling washes seed to the edges of the patch.
When can I mow a newly sown patch?
Wait until the seedlings are about 5–7.5 cm tall, then cut with the mower set high and firm the area lightly afterwards. That height and the firming come from RHS advice on lawns from seed. A low summer cut in the first week scalps plants that have barely rooted. Keep this patch on a higher cut than the rest of the lawn for the rest of the season, and keep dogs and games off it until the grass has thickened.
Can I sow lawn seed in October in Scotland?
You can if the soil is still mild and damp. The RHS describes about 7°C as an October floor in milder districts, which a sheltered lowland garden may still meet. An exposed or upland Scottish garden is often colder by then, so seed is more likely to sit in cold, wet ground. Feel the soil and check the nights. If frost is already forming, keep the packet until spring.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources used for this comparison, last updated October 2026.
- RHS: repairing lawns (retrieved October 2026)
- RHS: lawns from seed (retrieved October 2026)
- RHS: dead patches (retrieved October 2026)
- RHS: lawns in October (retrieved October 2026)
- RHS: lawns in shade (retrieved October 2026)
- Seed Marketing Regulations 2011, Schedule 1 (retrieved October 2026)
- Seed Marketing Regulations 2011, Schedule 3 Part 4 (retrieved October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 11 (retrieved October 2026)