1. Prepare the soil.

The soil must be worked up to a depth of approximately one inch to provide a lodging place for the grass seeds. In small areas, this can be done using any sharp garden tool. On large areas, a power slicing machine can be rented from most equipment rental stores.

2. Sow the seed evenly.

Seeding of the area can be done using any Scotts lawn spreader, either drop-type or rotary. On very small areas, the seed can even be spread by hand, although the tendency here is to apply more seed than is necessary. To make the job of seeding bare spots especially easy, you can use Scotts PatchMaster Lawn Repair Mix, a product which contains Scotts grass seed, along with the special Starter Fertilizer and mulch. All three are mixed together in a single package.

3. Be sure to fertilize.

Apply Scotts Starter Fertilizer the same day you seed, to get the seeding off to a fast, strong start. (This is an extremely important step although it doesn’t matter which you apply first.)

4. Watering is critical.

Keep the seedbed constantly moist to start germination. Water often, rather than deeply. Only the top inch of soil needs to be kept moist. Once germination starts, keep the area moist until the seedlings are well established.

5. Early follow-up.

Begin mowing as soon as the seedlings are about 1 1/2 inches tall. Do not mow when soil is so wet as to allow the mower to damage young plants. If weed seeds that were in the soil start to grow, do not use a weed killer until the young grass plants have been mowed four times.

6. Long-term follow-up.

As soon as the new seeding is established, the lawn should be started on an Annual Lawn Program for best results.