Swapped my drop spreader for a rotary one after 8 years of stripedy lawn

I used to use a drop spreader for fertilizer, you know, the kind that drops it right below. My lawn always had those dark green stripes where the fertilizer sat and lighter stripes in between. Last spring I finally picked up a rotary spreader for 40 bucks at a farm supply place. The difference is wild, it flings the stuff out in a wide arc so everything blends together. My whole yard got green evenly for the first time after just one application. Has anyone else fought with uneven coverage from their spreader?

3 comments

3 Comments

caleb_stone22d ago

I'm pretty sure drop spreaders were invented by someone who hates mowing and wanted to give you a second hobby. You spend an hour trying to keep those perfect straight lines only to realize the stuff clumped up around the wheels and now your lawn looks like a zebra with a skin condition. Meanwhile the rotary spreader just chucks pellets everywhere like a toddler throwing cereal and somehow that works way better. I swear the first time I used mine I stood in the middle of the yard and just spun around in a circle like an idiot and still got better coverage than I ever did with the drop one.

grace_knight701mo ago

And that's exactly why I tell people to skip the drop spreaders unless they've got a really tiny yard. The rotary ones just do a way better job getting the stuff out there even.

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torres.sage1mo ago

You said "skip the drop spreaders unless they've got a really tiny yard" and that's facts. My buddy Mitch bought a drop spreader for his half acre lot because he thought it would be more accurate. First time he used it he was out there for two hours going back and forth, and you could still see stripes where the stuff just clumped up. He finally borrowed my rotary spreader and did the whole yard in twenty minutes with way better coverage. He ended up selling the drop one on Facebook marketplace for half what he paid. Now every time we talk about yard stuff he brings up that mistake.