Gardena Hand-Held Spreader M: Spreader for simple distribution of fertiliser, seeds, and salt with a spreading width of 1-4 m, for lawn areas of up to about 100 m² (431-20)

After a disappointing experience with a cheap unbranded spreader, I decided to go with Gardena. My only fear was that even after paying higher price, this spreader might also get jammed the same way as the earlier cheaper ones. Thankfully, Gardena proved all my doubts wrong. It works very well with both grass seed and granular fertilizer. Very happy with performance. Aesthetic build. So far, seems sturdy.

Did the trick, personally I find Gardena products well made, reliable and longevity you can rely on and am hoping thr same will be said of this seeder. The only thing with this is the instructions couldve been better and more helpful especially for those people being a novice with seeding a lawn I feel. However no doubt lots of helpful advice online and via their customer services. Just needs to be included in the wrapping on this seeder. If this had been inc I wouldve given 5 stars.

Works well and gets an even spread of seed. Very cost and space efficient option for those who do not want to store a large rolling spreader that only gets used once a year.Sturdy structure, and nice adjustment of seed density too.

When reading reviews for this product bear in mind that Gardena make several different types of lawn spreaders and Amazon have listed them all together. This review is for the type 'L' drop spreader.I first bought a cheap hand held rotary spreader that did spread lawn fertilizer successfully. Unfortunately, it was too easy to spread the fertilizer onto the garden borders and paths too. The problem then is that the fertilizer contains a ferrous compound to kill moss and when it rained it left large rust stains on the concrete flags of the path, despite trying to brush the fertilizer off first. These stains are near impossible to remove even with proprietary acids and rust removers for concrete. Hence I've chosen a drop spreader which spreads the fertilizer only on the lawn.I considered several different makes of drop spreaders before deciding on this one. Gardena is a reputable German manufacturer and I've been pleased with the quality of some of their other products.The spreader was supplied in a substantial cardboard box complete with all the parts including the instructions and the 6 screws needed to assemble it. Assembly was quite simple and took only a few minutes, the only tool needed was a cross-head screwdriver, but a little force was required to insert the self-tapping screws. Another reviewer points out that the spring attaches directly to holes in the plastic and recommends that a metal ferrule would be better to avoid any chance of the plastic eventually splitting and I would agree with this. There is a plastic foot at the bottom of the spreader to keep it upright when stationary. This keeps the footprint of the spreader to a minimum and, unlike another type which uses protruding bars, enables the spreader to be stored more easily. The spreader is quite light in weight and could easily be hung on hooks for storage but no hooks are supplied. Gardena states that all the parts are rustproof, it can even be used to spread salt, and the spreader should be washed down after use.The quantity of fertilizer, seed etc. can be adjusted by slots in the handle that is connected to a steel cable to adjust the opening of a flap on the spreader or the flap can be closed completely by releasing the handle. IMPORTANT: the cable is connected to the handle with an orange plastic clip and two other reviewers have said that this clip detaches in use, one reviewer includes a video showing this. However, this can only be because the clip was not correctly attached to the handle. The instructions clearly show that there's a right way and a wrong way to attach it (see photograph). If fitted correctly the clip will not come off. There are notches in the handle that this clip goes into and this controls the dosage of the product being spread.I tested it with the recommended 32 grams of lawn treatment on a white sheet to ascertain how fast I had to move it and how even it spread the granules. This wasn't successful because it dropped most of it as soon as I opened the flap with the handle. It was more successful when I increased the quantity to 96 grams and covered 3 times the area but still dropped a lot when I first opened the flap. I think to be able to spread it at the correct dosage it needs to have a much larger quantity than a small test area and you need to move the spreader before opening the flap. I also think it would help to reduce the dosage for each pass and to go over the ground again but at 90 degrees across.I've hosed it down (don't do this where lawn treatment may leave rust stains), wiped it and left it to dry completely in the sun.I wanted to review this without waiting too long after I received it because the lawn treatment instructions say to apply it in April so I'll update my review when I've treated the lawn next month.So far though I'm prepared to give it 5 stars for the ease of assembly and quality of manufacture and 4 stars for how easy it is to spread until I update my review.18-05-2024: I need to update my review of the Gardena lawn spreader. Having used the spreader to put weed and feed (Westland all-in-one) on my lawn, I am mostly pleased with the result. I went up and down the length of the lawn and then went over it again from side to side. After a couple of weeks, the treatment has killed the moss and greened up the grass in most of the lawn, however, there were some bare patches where it appears the treatment killed the grass but this may have been down to me not moving it quickly enough.Also, because I only intend to put the treatment down in spring and autumn, I intended to disassemble the spreader and pack it away between treatments. Unfortunately, I hadn't realised that once the wheels are attached and the plastic caps are pushed in, then they can't be removed and the spreader cannot be put back in its box with its wheels on. If you wish to pack it away between uses, I therefore recommend that you leave off the plastic caps in the centre of the wheels.

The Gardena Hand-Held Spreader M is a fantastic tool for evenly distributing fertiliser, grass seed, and even salt in winter. It’s lightweight, easy to use, and great for small to medium-sized lawns (up to 100m²).The adjustable spreading width (1-4m) makes it versatile for different applications, whether you're seeding a lawn, fertilising, or de-icing pathways in winter. The ergonomic handle and smooth crank mechanism make it comfortable to hold and easy to control, ensuring even coverage without clumping or waste.Pros:Versatile – works for seeds, fertiliser, and saltAdjustable spreading width (1-4m) for better controlLightweight and easy to useErgonomic design with smooth crank mechanismGreat for small to medium lawns (up to 100m²)Cons:Not ideal for large lawns – better suited for smaller areasRequires a steady hand for even distributionOverall, this Gardena spreader is a handy, efficient tool for anyone looking to easily and evenly distribute lawn care products. If you have a small to medium garden, this is a great investment. Highly recommended!

Good quality. Nice easy and even distribution once you get a hang of it. Happy.

I got this spreader as the handle is in the top rather than at the side with an arm rest. It’s more compact than the others I’ve seen so doesn’t take up as much space on a shelf. Functionally it’s great. You can easily tell the difference between the different settings and it’s easy to get the seeds in even with the handle on top. Spreads seeds well and with the different spread settings you have a lot of control how many seeds you want to fire out. You will be filling up pretty quickly if it’s on max setting and you are cranking the handle quickly though. Feels robust and sturdy. A good buy

Whilst this is a robust tool compared to others I’ve used, it has a significant problem. It does not ‘scatter’ the fertiliser / lawn feed at all, it just drops between the wheels the width of the opening. This has led to striping and untreated areas where the wheels run. Yes, with very careful planning you could overlap the areas treated, but that risks overtreating the overlaps.