I'm thinking about first de thatching (with a rental machine) the lawn, then treating weeds and overseeding after that. Does that sound like a plan of action? And what would the best weed killer be? To be blunt, no it doesn't. Kentucky bluegrass is supposed to be dense (thick). I'm going with the idea that your grass is normal; however, your answers to a few questions might sway my opinion. If you watered the lawn daily or every other day, and you fertilized with liquid fertilizer (TruGreen or any lawn spray company), then it is possible you have thatch. If you have been watering deeply (a full inch all at one time) and infrequently (no more than once per week when temps climb into the 90s), then there is no chance you have thatch. Your Kentucky bluegrass is not completely out of dormancy yet. In fact it might not have started to come out of dormancy depending on if you have other grasses, like fescue, in the mix. Those brown patches are dormant KBG. The green patches are either fescue or KBG which has awakened. I could be wrong but I believe the tiny weeds you refer to in the picture is this year's Kentucky bluegrass awakening. Seeding in the spring is usually a problem for two reasons. 1) spring seeded grass cannot usually handle the summer heat...unless you live in a zone lower than 6. It would help to know where you live, but you might have a half a chance of making it through the summer with your new grass seed. 2) spring is when the crabgrass seed is sprouting. Crabgrass is a summer annual plant which is custom designed to thrive in the summer heat and fill every speck of open soil. Crabgrass this summer is not the end of the world, but you likely won't win Yard of the Month this year. Late summer is the time to evaluate your lawn and early fall (August for you) is the time to take action. Fall seeded lawns have all fall, winter, and spring to develop a root system to fight through the summer heat. By spring the turf should be too dense for crabgrass to get a start. I don't keep up with weed killers, so look for someone else to come along. In general they work better after the weeds have been fertilized. The time to fertilize in the spring is after you mow real grass (not weeds) for the second time. Waiting ensures that your roots are working. Then fertilize and 2 weeks after that you can spot spray with the appropriate weed killer.

Horribly, this question may become much more pertinent as developers close in around the allotments. We are surrounded on all sides by buildings several storeys high and feel that it is merely a matter of time before we get the heave-ho. So, I have seriously considered this prospect: too precious to abandon: The most common class of roses on my plot are the hybrid musks, for the good reason that they flourish and put out a flush in the autumn which is the equal, if not better, than the first explosion of blossom. So, MOONLIGHT would be kept. Funnily enough, I must concur with Kim and pick either Blue for You or Eyes for You - tricky but will stick with EYES FOR YOU as it is unusual, astoundingly healthy and very floriferous. Then there are the wildlings of which I will be greedy and keep 3: R.MOYESII, R.HUGONIS, R.CALIFORNICA (PLENA) (I am counting these as one as several of you have not just stuck with a mere 5) On to the climbers and ramblers with a very difficult decision but, after much grief, I think AYRESHIRE SPLENDENS makes the cut. A rose which will sprawl or climb, can be pillared ar espaliered, draped over a stump or scrambling down a bank, a delicately beatiful rose. Finally, because I love it, MADAME GREGOIRE STAECHELIN - this was the 'gateway' rose for me and I have remained faithful to its beauty. To go: For obvious (to me) reasons - FALSTAFF, CREPUSCULE (this is just a bit feeble)PENNY LANE - boringly generic, too formal and just not really to my taste. JUDE THE OBSCURE - I honestly would not be too sorry to see the back of all my austins (not that there are more than 6) apart from Graham Thomas which performs stunningly well in the fortuitous spot it was allocated. Finally, although it has astoundingly good blooms with long thornless stems, lasting for ages in the vase, it also defoliates almost completely so it is bye-bye PHILLIPPA, a renaissance rose from Poulsen. Good thread, Vettin, and a fear I really, really hope is not too imminent.

creek_side -- Thanks. No, it isn't short-cycling; runs steadily. Thermostat has fan choices of "Auto" or "On". "On" is same as the "circulate" you mentioned. Thermostat offers "Hold" choice to raise or lower temp from the "Scheduled" setting. Yesterday exterior temp was 90 and exterior humidity was also in the 90's. Interior scheduled setting was 77. I had the fan set at "On". It felt humid indoors. I set the thermostat to "Hold 74" and left the fan set at "On". In two hours the interior temp never dropped from 77 and the humidity was still 50%. Still need answer about which air returns should be open for cooling -- uppers or lowers.

Tinker_2006, I think the dissonance I'm experiencing is because of the highly patterned bedskirt. I think it's beautiful, but it seems like it calls out for an unpatterned comforter or duvet so that you get that soft, smooth lofted look contrasting with the busily patterned bedskirt. You could repeat the eyelet with trim on pillow shams. Also, I like a more decadent look that includes Euro pillows, but that's just personal preference. If I can, later I will try to find some pictures showing what I mean.