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Evenly Apply Compost With the Best Grass Seed Spreaders

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By Old House Journal Review Team
Last updated: 25 Jan 2023

Getting your garden or backyard into a pristine condition requires a lot of time and effort. And having to pick up lumps of fertilizer after applying it with a shovel can be time-consuming and takes a great deal of effort. But getting a grass spreader can help solve this problem for good. 

Grass seed spreaders can be the perfect choice for evenly spreading seeds, manure, fertilizers, and more over your entire lawn. And they should be incredibly straightforward to use and don’t really require much effort to operate.

While grass seed spreaders can improve your lawn care efficiency, finding something that can work for your setup can often get pretty confusing, especially with the wide variety of options out there. To help make this choice a little easier, check out this curated list of the premier grass seed spreaders for 2023.

 

Best Overall
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Landzie Grass Seed Spreader
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Most Compact
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Scotts Grass Seed Spreader
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Durable Materials
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EarthWay Grass Seed Spreader
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Easy To Use
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Walensee Grass Seed Spreader
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Show contents
Reviewing the Top Grass Seed Spreaders of 2023 in Detail
  • 1 Landzie Grass Seed Spreader
  • 2 Scotts Grass Seed Spreader
  • 3 EarthWay Grass Seed Spreader
  • 4 Walensee Grass Seed Spreader

Finding Your Next Grass Seed Spreader: A Buyer’s Guide

While grass seed spreaders can be ideal for spreading products evenly and preventing lumps on your lawn, it can be awfully difficult to choose between the large variety of shapes and sizes available. But don’t stress, here’s a list of some of the things you should take into consideration when looking for a grass seed spreader:

Things To Consider Before Buying Grass Seed Spreaders

Before you purchase a grass seed spreader, here are a few things you should look at:

Types of grass seed spreaders

Before you lock in a purchase, you need to consider what you’ll be using a spreader for, and that should help you with choosing a lawn spreader that can work for your particular needs and setup. Here are some main types of grass seed spreaders you’ll probably run into: 

  • Broadcast grass seed spreaders: These versions can work much more efficiently in larger areas because they can spread a product more evenly. These models do require a bit of skill to provide an even spread though, and you will need to measure the exact distance between each row carefully. And ideally, this distance should be around five feet. 
  • Drop seed spreaders: These models are much more accurate since they only drop a single seed (at designated intervals) between their tires. These spreaders can be much more useful if you have a smaller lawn or if you are spreading some product near a sidewalk or flowerbed — and they can also help you avoid getting any product on the sidewalk.
  • Handheld grass seed spreaders: If you’re looking for a compact option, these versions can work very well. These spreaders can be the perfect choice if you have a small lawn or just want to repair the bare spots in your garden. But you do need to make sure these models have a rotary function since this should help provide a more even spread of manure or product on your lawn. 

Materials and durability

Once you are certain about which type of spreader you need, you should make sure the materials used to make it won’t break quickly. To help ensure that your new seed spreader lasts a long time, it’s a very good idea to pick an option with a steel frame for the handles. 

And you should also check to see that the tires use a good design and are resistant to different temperatures, which should help make sure they don’t go flat after a little while. Plus, you also need to check whether a spreader has a powdered finish to help it resist extreme temperatures.

Trigger to spread

If you don’t want to spread your product throughout your entire lawn, you will need to make sure that a spreader features a trigger-to-spread feature. This feature should allow you to control when and where you spread your product, which should help provide more control and accuracy. 

Handle

Whether you are using a broadcast or drop seed spreader, you need to make sure that some anti-slip rubber comes attached to the handles. These rubber attachments can allow you to grip the handle and keep spreading your product for extended periods without feeling tired or strained. Plus, they should also ensure that a spreader does not slip from your grip and cause a mess.  

Storage

If you intend to use your lawn spreader once a month and then store it, you need to make sure that the device has a storable design. So, you should check if a spreader comes with a foldable handle, which helps make a device more compact and much easier to store. And this will also help make sure that a spreader does not take up too much space in your storeroom. 

Calibrating Grass Seed Spreaders

Calibrating how much product you need to cover your lawn should help with preventing waste, and you also shouldn’t have to refill your spreader halfway through the process either. 

First, start by dividing the size of your lawn by the square feet a fertilizer bag covers and then multiply the bag’s weight by this number. This answer should give you the amount of fertilizer required for covering your lawn in square feet. 

Taking Care of Grass Seed Spreaders

Taking care of your grass seed spreader is essential for helping avoid issues or functionality problems in the future. The most important thing to check is that the hopper, or the inside of your spreader, stays clear of any debris or leftover product, which should help provide a more even spread. 

And you should also regularly oil all the pivots and wires on your seed spreader, especially if it has a trigger for turning it on and off. Regular oiling can make it easier to roll too, which should allow you to use your new device for longer sessions.

Reviewing the Top Grass Seed Spreaders of 2023 in Detail

1

Landzie Grass Seed Spreader

– Best Overall
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The Landzie Grass Seed Spreader uses a lightweight design, so you shouldn’t tire yourself out taking care of your lawn. And this option is also powder coated too, helping protect it from corrosion, so you shouldn’t have to worry about getting a new one anytime soon. It also comes with a well-gripped handle, helping make it extremely simple to carry around. 

This spreader’s rotating trommel also comes secured with double-locking clasps, helping ensure this product’s hatching does not open while you are using it. And this pick even comes with good customer care, so you can feel a little more confident and less stressed about wasting money or getting a faulty product. 

The seed spreader should also hold back any large chunks you might have to remove later, helping save you time. Plus, it is pretty straightforward to set up, so you can start your work fairly quickly. The lightweight design and well-made finish helped make this grass seed spreader the best overall on this list.

Pros
  • Lightweight, easy-to-handle design
  • Long-lasting, corrosion-resistive materials 
  • Good company policy and service
Cons
  • Not great for moist and clumpy manure
2

Scotts Grass Seed Spreader

– Most Compact
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This option from Scotts comes equipped with a foldable handle, which helps provide a compact design for easy storage. And this seed spreader can hold a pretty astonishing 5,000 square feet of material, so you can use this pick for a whole spreading session by just filling it up once. 

Also, this grass seed spreader includes settings for different product sizes, so none of your material should be wasted. Plus, it comes with an edge guard, which helps provide more control while you use this product.

This option is also mounted on durable wheels, so it should be easy to maneuver without worrying about damage or misapplication. And this seed spreader comes fully assembled too, helping reduce the time and hassle you’d have to devote to putting it together by yourself. 

Pros
  • Large-capacity, efficient design
  • Includes settings for different products
  • Comes pre-assembled and ready to use
Cons
  • Not very resilient in cold temperatures
3

EarthWay Grass Seed Spreader

– Durable Materials
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This product from EarthWay comes with a steel bar handle that helps provide more even weight distribution, helping make this spreader much easier to handle. And this seed spreader also features pneumatic stud tires that are designed to resist going flat.

This grass seed spreader also comes equipped with a side-spread control system which helps provide an even spread by promoting precision and accuracy. And this spreader houses a clog-free system too, so you can even use it in damp conditions without worrying too much. 

There’s also a side control system to help add some more control and prevent seeds from going onto sidewalks, helping provide a much cleaner operation. And if that wasn’t enough, this grass seed spreader even comes with a complete gearbox, so any repairs you need to do should be extremely easy. 

Pros
  • Durable, sturdy, and reliable design
  • Usable even in wet weather and conditions
  • Includes an easy-to-repair gearbox
Cons
  • A little difficult to assemble
4

Walensee Grass Seed Spreader

– Easy To Use
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The Walensee Grass Seed Spreader comes with non-slip handle grips, so you should be able to easily maneuver it almost any way you need to. And thanks to the high-quality steel build, the spreader should be incredibly sturdy and durable. Plus, the powder-coated finish is designed to withstand the blazing heat of the sun too, so this tool should stick by your side for a long time.  

This spreader is also extremely easy to assemble, so you shouldn’t need professional help to assemble it. And this seed spreader’s sturdy design allows it to be used on uneven surfaces and slopes, helping you avoid buying new equipment for different terrain. Plus, this device also holds back chunks of product you would otherwise have to pick up later, helping you save time. 

This spreader is extremely easy to fill up too, and it can hold pretty incredible amounts of product, so you should be able to get even big jobs done with a single spreading session. And this device also comes with a full refund policy, so you shouldn’t have to worry as much about wasting money on a bad or faulty tool.  

Pros
  • Easy-to-assemble build
  • Large-capacity, efficient design
  • Distributes material evenly
Cons
  • Cannot be stopped once loaded

People Also Asked

Q: What do the different settings on my spreader do?

A: The numbers on a grass seed spreader represent how fast the product will be spread around a lawn. And using a different setting for one part of your lawn and an alternate setting for another area will result in an uneven distribution across your lawn.

Q: What size grass seed spreader should I use with a 50-pound bag of fertilizer?

A: Generally speaking, you should get a bigger spreader than the bag you’re using if you are certain that you’ll be distributing the entire bag of fertilizer at once. So if you intend on using the entire 50-pound bag, a spreader with a 70-pound capacity can be ideal. And this should also help prevent any excess fertilizer from spilling and getting wasted.

Q: Can a grass seed spreader really help my lawn?

A: While these devices might seem like they’re doing something you can accomplish with a shovel, grass seed spreaders can save you hundreds of hours of labor. This is thanks to their ability to stop lumps from making their way onto your lawn while also easily spreading your product, which would take a considerable amount of time otherwise. So, spending a relatively small amount of money can really end up saving you a great deal of time and effort.

Outdoors Tools
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By Old House Journal Review Team
The Old House Journal Review Team’s product reviews and in-depth guides are here to help you restore, repair, update, and decorate your home. The content is created by The Old House Journal Review Team. The Old House Journal editorial staff is not involved. Old House Journal is reader-supported: When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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