Spreading centipede seed

Are the bare spots associated with anything in particular - you killed a bunch of weeds, shady areas, low spots holding water, etc?

If the bare areas aren’t large, or even if they are, I’d recommend buying individual pieces of centipede sod to fill in those areas. It will be more reliable than seed. Centipede seed is not like ryegrass, or Bermudagrass, it takes a long term time to germinate and fill in an area requires a great deal of care - literature says up to 2 or 3 years to fill in with seed.

Small bare areas should fill in pretty well over on their own in the next couple months - my centipede front yard is sending out new runners (rhizomes) like crazy. But do fill fill low spots. Just baby your existing centipede - fertilize according to recommendations, water when needed, cut it at the right height (1 1/2 to 2 inches) and add patience to the mix - and it should fill in.

Would also be a good idea to have a soil test analysis of the lawn for pH and general soil fertility - many areas of LA where soil pH is higher than optimum for centipede (including my yard) - if so there are amendments that can be added to correct that but you need the soil anaysis first.

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I put down some 25-0-5 a few weeks ago and now the only weeds left are grassy weeds. I'm spreading the dirt out now and will likely coat the whole back yard and try to level it,some areas with little top soil and with heavier top soil. When do I fertilize next and also what type. Finally what should I do with the clumps of dirt, I wont be able to smash them all up but if they stay will it create an issue?

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The fertilizer you used is fine. Do you recall how much you applied per 1000 sq ft ? With a 25-0-5 you should apply 2 lbs per 1000 sq ft, which would be equivalent to a 1/2 pound of N per 1000 sq ft. You don’t want exceed 1 lb of N per year on centipede, as centipede doesn’t respond well to heavy fertilization like other grasses. Second application in June if you didn’t over apply in March.

Big clumps of dirt, usually dry out pretty quickly, and if not too large run them over with the mower to pulverize them. Sometimes I would drop the head of a sledgehammer on a big clump to break it in smaller clumps than the mower could pass over or just chop them into smaller pieces with a shovel. Or move them up against a fence where you don’t mow.

Don’t fert immediately after seeding. Water, sun, and dirt. Let it germinate and grow for a couple weeks.

The best time to seed is immediately following an aeration