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You can reseed a rundown lawn with dead grass, but first, you should remove all of the dead parts and test the soil. Doing this will help you understand what’s killing your lawn so that you can fix it and prevent it from ruining your new grass. Once you’ve made the appropriate adjustments, you can rake, fertilize, and reseed.

The screwdriver test involves trying to push a screwdriver into your lawn. If it goes in easily, you’re likely overwatering and should cut back. If there’s moderate resistance, you have a good watering schedule and soil composition. If there’s a lot of resistance or you can’t get the screwdriver into the soil, you may need to aerate your lawn to reduce compaction and increase your watering schedule.

Whether or not grass will fill in bare spots itself depends on the type of grass you have. For example, grass with rhizomes (e.g., Bermuda grass) and stolons (e.g., Saint Augustine grass) will naturally fill in bald spots as it spreads laterally. However, clump-forming grasses will not spread. 

St. Augustine is a hardy grass that’s relatively easy to grow, but it requires regular lawn maintenance to stay healthy. It’s best to keep up with a regular fertilization schedule during the growing season, plus a yearly dethatching to help it properly absorb air and moisture. Watering is also important, so be sure to water it enough to keep the soil moist.