How to Use a Lawn Spreader Without Stripes

To use a lawn spreader without leaving stripes, set it to the rate on the product bag (or slightly lower and make two passes), fill it on a driveway or tarp, apply a header strip around the edges first, then walk the interior in straight, parallel lines at a steady pace. With a broadcast spreader, overlap so each pass throws product to the wheel tracks of the last one. With a drop spreader, overlap the wheel tracks slightly so no strip is missed. Close the hopper every time you stop or turn. For the most even result, especially with fertilizer, split the rate in half and make the second pass at a right angle to the first. That criss-cross pattern hides almost every small error in speed, overlap or setting.

Part of our Lawn Care guide →

In this guide

1. Broadcast vs Drop: Know What You Are Using
2. Step 1: Find the Right Setting
3. Step 2: Fill the Spreader Off the Lawn
4. Step 3: Spread a Header Strip Around the Edges
5. Step 4: Walk Straight, Parallel Lines
6. Step 5: Cross-Hatch With a Second Pass
7. How to Calibrate a Spreader
8. Common Causes of Stripes and Patchy Results
9. Slopes, Curves and Small Areas
10. Timing and Conditions
11. Cleaning and Storing Your Spreader
12. Frequently Asked Questions

Broadcast vs Drop: Know What You Are Using

The technique depends on the spreader type:

• Broadcast (rotary) spreaders drop product onto a spinning plate that throws it in a wide arc, often several feet on each side. They cover big lawns quickly and are forgiving of small overlap errors, because the edges of each pass are thin and blend into the next. They throw onto sidewalks and beds, so edge control matters.
• Drop spreaders release product straight down through holes in the bottom of the hopper, in a band exactly as wide as the hopper. They are precise along beds and edges, but any gap between passes shows up as a clear stripe.
• Handheld spreaders are small broadcast spreaders for small lawns, patches and spot seeding; the same overlap principles apply.

If you have not bought one yet, our comparison of broadcast vs drop spreaders explains which suits your lawn, and our roundup of the best lawn spreaders compares current models. This guide focuses on using the one you have; for where spreading fits alongside mowing, watering and aeration, see our lawn care guide.

Step 1: Find the Right Setting

Most bags of fertilizer, seed and lawn products print settings for popular spreader models. Find your spreader brand and model in the chart. If it is not listed, look on the spreader manufacturer’s website for a conversion chart, or use the calibration method below.

A common trick for even coverage is to use the setting for half the rate and cover the lawn twice. Some spreader manuals and product labels give both full-rate and half-rate settings; if not, start a couple of numbers lower than the full-rate setting and adjust after the first pass.

Seed vs fertilizer settings

Grass seed varies wildly in size and flow. Tiny Kentucky bluegrass and bermudagrass seed flows quickly and needs a lower setting, while fluffy tall fescue or seed with coatings flows slowly. Lawn fertilizer granules are more uniform. Never assume a fertilizer setting works for seed, or the other way around. For overseeding specifics, see our guide on how to overseed a lawn.

Step 2: Fill the Spreader Off the Lawn

1. Park the spreader on a driveway, patio or tarp, never on the grass. Spills of fertilizer burn a dark or dead patch; spills of seed create a dense clump.
2. Make sure the hopper is closed before you pour.
3. Fill it only as much as you can comfortably push, and break up any clumps in the product with your gloved hand.
4. Sweep up any spilled granules from hard surfaces and return them to the bag; fertilizer washed into storm drains pollutes waterways.

Step 3: Spread a Header Strip Around the Edges

Before you work the middle, go around the perimeter of the lawn once or twice. These header strips give you room to turn at each end of the lawn with the hopper closed, without missing the ends of each row.

• With a broadcast spreader, use the edge guard or deflector if it has one, so product does not fly into beds, onto sidewalks or into the street. If it does not, walk with the spreader a few feet inside the lawn edge so the throw lands on the turf.
• With a drop spreader, run the wheel right along the edge of the lawn.

Step 4: Walk Straight, Parallel Lines

Start at one header strip and push straight across the lawn to the opposite one. Open the hopper as you begin walking, not before, and close it as you reach the header strip. Turn on the header strip, line up the next pass and open the hopper again as you start moving.

Overlap for broadcast spreaders

The thrown pattern is heaviest in the middle and thins toward the edges. To even it out, space your passes so the outer edge of each throw reaches the wheel tracks from your previous pass. In practice that usually means walking a distance apart of a bit more than half of the total throw width. Look back after a pass or two; with granular fertilizer you can usually see the edge of the spread on the grass blades, and wheel tracks show up clearly in dewy grass.

Overlap for drop spreaders

A drop spreader places product only between its wheels, so passes need to touch or overlap slightly. Line up so the wheel of the spreader runs in or just inside the wheel track of the previous pass. Missing by even a few inches leaves a stripe of pale or unseeded grass that will be obvious a week later.

Keep a steady pace

Spreader settings assume a normal walking pace, often around 3 miles per hour, which is a brisk walk. Walking slower dumps more product; walking faster spreads it thinner and, on broadcast spreaders, throws it wider. Keep the same pace throughout, including on slopes, and keep the handle at the height the manual specifies so the spinner stays level.

Step 5: Cross-Hatch With a Second Pass

When you have covered the whole lawn at half rate, refill and do it again with your passes running at 90 degrees to the first set. If you went north to south first, go east to west second. Any slight gaps or heavy bands from the first pass are filled or diluted by the second. This is the single most effective way to avoid stripes, and it is standard practice when seeding bare soil.

How to Calibrate a Spreader

If your spreader is not on the bag chart, or your results are patchy, calibrate it. The method is simple:

1. Check the bag for the target rate, usually expressed as pounds per 1,000 square feet.
2. Measure out a test area, such as 100 square feet (10 by 10 feet) on a driveway lined with a tarp for a drop spreader, or 1,000 square feet of lawn for a broadcast spreader.
3. Weigh a known amount of product, put it in the spreader at a mid setting and cover the test area at your normal pace.
4. Weigh what is left. The difference is what you applied. Scale it up to 1,000 square feet if you used a smaller area.
5. Compare to the target rate. If you applied too much, lower the setting; too little, raise it. Repeat until you are close.

Write the setting on a strip of tape on the spreader handle for each product you use regularly, so you do not need to calibrate again next season.

Common Causes of Stripes and Patchy Results

Problem	Cause	Fix
Light green or thin stripes between passes	Gaps between passes	Overlap more; cross-hatch at half rate
Dark green or burned bands	Double application or overlap too heavy	Space passes properly; close hopper on turns
Dead or dark patches at row ends	Hopper left open while turning or stopped	Use header strips; close hopper before stopping
One side heavier than the other	Broadcast pattern lopsided or side deflector partly closed	Check spinner and deflector; tilt handle to level
Seed clumps in some areas	Spills or slow walking	Fill off the lawn; keep pace steady
Product runs out early or lasts too long	Wrong setting	Calibrate

Slopes, Curves and Small Areas

Real lawns are rarely neat rectangles. On slopes, walk across the slope rather than up and down where it is safe to do so, since pushing uphill slows you and walking downhill speeds you up, both of which change the rate. Around curved beds, follow the curve with your header strip, then fill the interior with straight passes and close the hopper as you reach the header. For narrow side yards and strips between a driveway and a walk, a drop spreader or a handheld spreader on a low setting gives better control than a big broadcast unit throwing product onto the pavement.

For bare patches, mix seed with a little dry sand or compost and spread by hand or with a handheld spreader, then rake lightly so seed contacts the soil. Trying to treat small patches with a full-size spreader usually overapplies.

Timing and Conditions

• Wind: avoid spreading in a breeze; it distorts broadcast patterns and blows fine seed off target.
• Moisture: granular fertilizer is best applied to dry grass, then watered in, unless the label says to apply to damp grass (common for weed-and-feed products that need granules to stick to leaves).
• Rain: do not apply fertilizer right before heavy rain, which washes it into gutters and drains.
• Season: follow a feeding schedule suited to your grass type; our lawn fertilizer schedule sets out timing for cool- and warm-season lawns.

Cleaning and Storing Your Spreader

• Empty leftover product back into the bag over a tarp or driveway.
• Rinse the hopper, gate, spinner and gears with a hose on the lawn rather than the driveway, so traces of fertilizer do not run into drains.
• Let it dry fully, then oil the wheel axles and gate linkage lightly.
• Store it upright and dry, with the gate open slightly so it does not stick closed.