Homeowner shares side-by-side comparison after neighbor's failed attempt at lawn maintenance: 'What's the right way to do this job?'

Fertilizing your lawn can be a great way to keep it looking lush and healthy throughout the year — just make sure you're doing it properly.

In a Reddit post, one user shared what appears to be a Google Satellite image of part of their neighborhood. While the lawn in front of one house looks almost flawless, their neighbors have had a trickier time with maintenance. 

While it's obvious that some kind of fertilizer was used, it wasn't spread evenly across the whole lawn, leading to a snake-like path of fine-looking greenery on top of dry, dying grass.

"What's the right way to do this job?" one Redditor asked. "Seriously, I need to know,"  

"Should have bought a few more bags and a broadcast spreader!" another user commented. 

A lot of the commenters on the post echoed using a broadcast spreader for more even coverage, but the original poster said their neighbor used one in this case — just not in the most effective way. 

"He used a broadcast spreader but went way too wide between passes, like 15 feet between rows," they said.

The comedic aesthetics of the side-by-side lawns were encouraging the shares and comments, but having a healthy lawn is not only a source of pride in your neighborhood — it can also provide a number of benefits. 

According to LoveYourLandscape.org, grass can help to capture dust, smoke particles, and pollution, giving you greater air quality where you live.

A healthy lawn can also help prevent flooding. Citing the Journal of Environmental Quality, the website said it can absorb more than 6,000 gallons of water from a single rainfall.

Furthermore, grass helps to keep your surroundings cooler, as it absorbs and captures heat. Artificial turf, asphalt, and concrete, meanwhile, absorb heat and expel it, leading to temperatures ticking up a couple of degrees in the immediate vicinity. 

Other than fertilizing, the website provided a couple of tips for good lawn maintenance. Soaking it every few days instead of watering daily is advised while keeping the length around two to three inches is another suggestion. 

Keeping grass clippings on the lawn rather than disposing of them is another tip, as the grass breaks down and provides nutrients for the soil. 

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