Guv Bob wrote:

Any ideas how to get these bare spots filled in again? Same spots, same places as last year about this time. Location is So Calif. No rain to speak of, but have been watering a couple of times a week.

Last year I spent a lot of time preparing the soil, raked in some peat moss & sowing perennial rye. Kept it watered and had moderate success. Now this year, it's mostly all gone and back like it was before.

http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/g...ozin/GRASS.jpg

In this photo, the foreground is near a water spigot and gets plenty of water from general use. The rest is all hand watered and is greening up in some places, all except the bare spots which doesn't change from week to week.

There is still plenty of peat moss and decent dirt.

Peat moss only helps seed germination by holding moisture but adds
little to nothing in way of nutrients for growth, plus it acidifies so
whenever using peat moss for beginning a lawn you must add lime too...
helps a lot to periodically test for proper pH and adjust as needed.
And peat moss only lasts perhaps 6 months before it totally
decomposses and washes away.

Your photo is really too small to show detail but to me, and having
lived in SoCal for five years, it looks like typical lousy SoCal soil.
To successfully grow lawn grass there you must bring in lots of rich
topsoil, minimally 4", 6" is better. And then once every year you
need to apply a good half inch of rich top soil as a top dressing. You
need to aerate too. Growing good lawn grass is complex regardless
where but SoCal is probably the most difficult area in the US, and no
matter how much you try and whatever else you do without having an
automatic irrigation system you are doomed to failure. When I lived
on Long Island a lawn was difficult too, the soil was primarilly sand.
Fortunately here in the Catskills I don't have a lawn growing problem
my lawn grows too quickly and very thick. And I do absolutely nothing
but mow, I mow ten acres of lawn every week... I never water, I never
fertilize, I apply no chemicals whatsoever... the critters apply all
the amendments.
This morning it's pouring rain:
http://i59.tinypic.com/t69lqr.jpg
http://i60.tinypic.com/2yv2dkm.jpg