I cannot seem to get my grass to fill out. I have big patches where it won't grow. The grass is also very thick stems and rough.....not like the thin pluss grass of the neighbors. I have tried seeding, fertz, etc. I have thatched it and aerated. I have noticed that the sod is very old and several inches thick down till you get to dirt. Any advice?

Have you taken a soil test? Send me an email with your phone number and I will call you. We can figure out what the problem and devise a solution.

My neighbor is currently dealing with this issue. He has a very small lawn so he took out all the lawn down to good soil, added more soil then reseeded the whole lawn. If your lawn is bigger with just bad spots, you could likely do the same in a bad areas.

I have big patches where it won't grow.

Any female dogs peeing in the yard? You can treat the soil, or water the crap out of it to get rid of the salts.

The grass is also very thick stems and rough

Sounds like crab or quack grass. Pull that out, and get some Kentucky bluegrass seed.

Try some "Toledo window box".

FH

oh Frank...

My neighbor had a similar problem. Turned out they had a natural gas leak under that patch of grass.

Lawn grubs or other lawn beetles can kill grass in patches.