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Too much clover in your lawn can indicate several issues with your soil. Clover can thrive in soils with abnormally high pH, low-cut grass, and low nitrogen. Amending these issues can push clover out for good.

Hardy perennial clover loves the low nitrogen and compact conditions that often come with poor, infertile soils. But other factors also contribute to a clover explosion, including drought conditions, cool temperatures, under fertilization, and over-irrigation. You’ll need to evaluate all these elements when planning to kill off the clover.

Yes, but the best approach is to apply fertilizer well before you actually sprinkle the seeds. Apply fertilizer with an NPK ratio somewhere around 10-10-20, or 10-10-10, depending on soil test results and the type of grass you're planting, about six to eight weeks before planting grass seed. This mix added to loosened soil will give the grass seed its best chance of getting off to a solid start. 

Provided you're using an appropriate starter fertilizer for grass seed, you can put down seeds and fertilizer at the same time. However, putting them down separately, one after the other, on the same day will help to avoid over- or under-applying the lawn food. Avoid using a fertilizer with weed control elements, as these will likely keep the grass seeds from starting.  

First, you should figure out whether you have dormant or dead grass. Dead grass won’t come back, so you’ll have to reseed if you’re hoping for a lush lawn. However, grass can go dormant if it hasn’t received enough water or if temperatures are too cold. If it’s still decently warm outside, you can revive dormant grass by watering it. But if it’s mid-January in New England, for example, you’ll need to wait until the weather warms up again. If you want to keep grass green in winter, consider a grass like Kentucky bluegrass, which maintains its color year-round.