I'm new too, and I just had to do some weed control, had to use chemicals. My lawn and soil are better because of the organics and compost in some areas, but for now I've gotta kill weeds.
I first hit the whole lawn with my pump sprayer. Now I'm only spot spraying. Used Bayer advanced, best stuff I've ever used, didn't quite kill the crabgrass though so had to go with Image for that, still waiting on the results. My lawn is looking better and my burmuda is looking better because it's not competing any more. so I'm using organic fertilizers, but still having to do some chemicals on weeds, then in the fall in early next spring I'll try the corn gluten meal to see how it's pre-emergent properties do for me.
I went organic last year, but held off on killing the weeds, well they were even worse this year, so gotta be practical until I get them under control then my guess is I will still have to spot spray some now and then. I'll use the weed hound when they get down to manageable but that doesn't work on grassy weeds. Good luck.
Kevin

Well, you've heard it before, but I'll restate it here.

The best defense is a strong offense.

This also applies to lawn care.

The single most important thing you can do to combat weed infestation is to have a healthy aggressive stand of turf. The best way to have a healthy aggressive stand of turf is to follow proper cultural practices.

I don't use any chemical weed control on my lawn, yet I have fewer weeds than any of my neighbors. I use proper cultural practices.... and a -->Weed Hound.

For the original poster, what type of turfgrass do you have? It appears you live in zone 5, but that could mean many different things(places), so please tell where you live & what type of turfgrass you have so a more detailed answer can be given to you.

For kmnhiramga, and others, a general "rule of thumb" set of cultural practices.....

Let's review the Lawn Care Basics... they are:

1) Water deeply & infrequently. Deeply means at least in inch of irrigation, the goal being to get moisture down 8" to 10" deep in the soil. Infrequently means monthly during the cool months and no more than weekly during the hottest part of summer. If your grass looks dry before the month/week is up, water longer next time. Deep watering grows deep, drought resistant roots. Infrequent watering allows the top layer of soil to dry completely which kills off many shallow rooted weeds.

2) Mow frequently at the highest setting on your mower. Most grasses are the most dense when mowed tall. Bermuda, centipede, and bent grasses are the most dense when mowed at the lowest setting on your mower. Dense grass shades out weeds and uses less water. Dense grass feeds the deep roots you're developing in 1 above. Mowing frequently means to mow so that you don't cut off more than 1/3 or the grass blade. So if you're mowing to a cut height of 4", you should mow before your grass reaches 6" tall. Personally I mow to a cut height of .625" & I usually mow when it gets up to about 7/8" or 1" tall. You should also mulch-mow, or in my case, since I don't have a mulching mower (I use a reel mower) I just leave the clippings. So Mulch mow, or leave the clippings please... Why?

a) Grass clippings are 80% water and decompose quickly releasing nutrients into your soil.
b) Mulching provides a portion of the lawns fertilizer needs providing nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and trace amounts of micronutients.
c) Mulching reduces the amount of time you spend bagging and fertilizing.
d) Grass clippings donÂt cause thatch. (over watering and over fertilizing do)
e) Mulching reduces yard waste by 20-40%.
f) Mulching reduces the amount of water your lawn needs.

3) Fertilize several times throughout the growing season. Which type of fertilizer you use is less important than steps 1 & 2 above, but I personally prefer organic & use feed grains.

It really isn't more complicated than that.

Dan

Dan, I think the only thing I'm not doing regarding good cultural practices is fertilizing enough. I spent two summers with not a lot of time or money and all I did was mow, now I have more weeds than lawn in some places. To keep them from continuing to spread i think i need to combat them with something (chemical) to get it to manageable. I would be out there for weeks with a weed hound. I tried that last year but still more weeds again this year. I am getting there, and the seeded bermuda in the back that I thought I was going to have to replant is bouncing back, and even more when I killed the competing weeds. hope to be where you are (totally chemical free) in a couple of more seasons.

I mow my bermuda often, never scalp it, only cutting less than 1/3, I keep it at 1.5" - 2" as short as it can get it with a rotary mower. Can't water right now here in Georgia, but this summer has been better than last summer, everything is pretty green.

Thanks for all of your help and encouragement.
kevin

To answer the previous question about what kind of grass I have, how can I tell? I inhierited the lawn from the previous owners... I suspect they laid some kind of sod but I don't know what.