So I have this bag of grass seed...

[mwhitnee]

I just couldn't get to planting my $100 50 lb bag of seed I was going to overseed the front lawn. Here is the dilemma...

I've been super busy and my lawn tractor broke (I fixed it as of yesterday, bad starter). What I was going to do was one last mowing, get the remainder of the leaves up that way, and then spread the seed in the Fall. But now things aren't looking good for that last mowing/leaf clean up and to me it makes no sense to spread seed over the leaves.

I had weeds last year (a lot) and really need to do a weed treatment over anything. I live in MA, and I was too late in doing it last year (I did it) because I still had a ton of weeds last year.

So, how would I seed and do the weed treatment? I know the treatment kills the seed. I'm hoping I can get in one last mowing, but need a plan for both scenarios. Thanks!!

 

[velvetfoot]

There might be a pre emergent that doesn't affect grass seed. I seem to recall using it once, but that it was expensive.

 

[jatoxico]

Feeling ya, did similar this year. Treated for weeds w/ liquid Ortho Weed B Gon waited a couple weeks then aerated and seeded. Was a little late but temps held off and got good germination. Hopefully my little seedlings will survive the winter, they should.

Have leftover seed that I still want to spread as "dormant" seeds. Can read up on this. These won't sprout until spring. After germination I'll wait a few weeks and retreat for weeds. Will delay putting down pre-emergent for crabgrass as long as possible.

 

[Babaganoosh]

Overseed the back yard this year and do the pre emergent on the front yard in spring. Then you really should wait until the fall to overseed.

It sucks but it's what going to be doing come spring. It's gonna be pre emergent in the backyard and try to overseed the front a bit. Then when fall gets here I'll overseed the back yard. It's not idea but getting a nice lawn is a marathon and not a sprint.

 

[mustash29]

We've already hard a few hard frosts this fall, it is too late to seed. Anything you put down now is just going to become bird food.

Once spring arrives and things start to green up, apply lime if needed. I also recommend the spring fertilizer with "dimension" pre-emergent crab grass preventer. 8-12 weeks after applying the dimension you can do your spring seeding of thin areas. Apply some starter fertilizer as well.

For summer weed control I prefer the Ortho "weed b gone" liquid applied with a garden hose sprayer. This allows for light treatment of some areas and heavy treatment of problem areas.

I use starter fertilizer all summer long. It has the strongest effects and with frequent light applications it makes for a thick dark green lawn. The 3 numbers are nitrogen (up) phosphorous (down) and potash (all around).

If you keep your bag of seed cool, dry & away from rodents this winter it should be just fine for use next year.

A healthy well fed lawn will naturally resist weeds, etc. Also do a bit of research on grubs. They get active in the spring & lay their eggs in early summer. When the young hatch they DESTROY everything. They live in the upper 2" of soil. They eat all summer long. When the weather turns colder they go down 6-8" for the winter. Topical lawn chemicals will not penetrate to this level. It is best to treat for grubs in early spring, mid summer, or if needed later summer to early fall.

Diazinon was the bomb. It's been off the market for over 10 years now. I have had poor results with the Spectracide products. I will be using the Bayer Advanced or Scotts products next year.

My neighbor is a pro landscaper, most of these ideas are his. They have been working good for my sandy soil.

 

[mwhitnee]

Overseed the back yard this year and do the pre emergent on the front yard in spring.

I think I might do this. The front needs the weed treatment the most and I might be able to spot treat the back yard next year. If I'm lucky I'll get a thaw before Spring but probably not. So I'll clean up the whole yard in the Spring, seed the back and use starter fertilizer, and fertilize the front to get the weeds down.

It's a marathon....

 

[jatoxico]

http://turf.umn.edu/news/consider-dormant-seeding-your-lawn-fall

Many discussions on this on the inter-web but it's a common practice with good success rate.