Bumpy, uneven lawn? How to fix it

Why lawns go uneven

Soil settles, especially over old trenches and on new builds. Frost heave pushes the ground around over winter. Skunks and raccoons digging for grubs tear up patches. And Windsor's clay holds water, so soft spots get pressed down.

Shallow dips: top-dress

For dips under an inch or so, spread a thin layer of screened soil or a soil and sand mix over the low spot, no more than about half an inch at a time, and rake it in so the grass blades still poke through. Water it, let the grass grow through, and repeat until it's level.

Deeper holes: lift the sod

For deeper low spots, cut the grass in an H or X shape, peel it back, fill the hole with soil, firm it down, then lay the grass back over it and water it well.

Bumps and high spots

Same idea in reverse: peel the grass back, scrape some soil out from underneath, and lay it back down.

If it's the whole lawn

When the whole lawn is lumpy, slopes toward the house or holds water after rain, patching won't keep up. The fix is to take the old lawn out, regrade the ground so it's level and sloped away from the house, and lay new sod.

Grubs first

If animals are digging up the lawn, check for grubs before you level anything. Otherwise the digging starts again.