Unless you are seeding zoysia or bermuda grass, then EARLY FALL IS ALWAYS THE BEST TIME TO SEED. The next best time is mid fall. If you wait until late fall then you don't have a chance to fill in any thin spots where you didn't get enough grass seed the first time. Spring is the second worst time of year to seed with summer being the worst. Even winter can be an better than spring or summer under certain circumstances.

LOL, I was just reading one of your posts yesterday about how you don't recommend soil for topdressing and wondered if you would weigh in. (: I love the idea of reclaiming my hard clay eventually (when I aerated, some of the plugs that came out were hard little bullets that still haven't broken down!). However, in the middle of our front yard, we have two access panels down to the telephone/hydro/cable lines that are buried in newer subdivisions around here. Last fall, I bent my lawnmower blade hitting the cement corner of one, and this year, the soil around both panels has settled quite a bit more. I was thinking that I'd use the soil/compost mix to fill in some of these areas, rather than straight compost, which will decompose eventually. However, I also don't want to raise the level of my yard so that I scalp the grass when I mow on the edge by the driveway. So, should I just use the soil mix to raise the lower areas, and compost on the rest of the yard? Given the quality of the existing soil at this point, I also wanted to ensure my overseeding was successful. Thanks!

Don't do anything else, including raking, until we figure some things out. Spraying the bermuda might have been a mistake. I realize you don't want bermuda, but it might be the most dominant grass for your area. It can be beautiful when properly cared for. Certainly it will overrun fescue every time. Where do you live? Dethatching is rarely necessary. Think of that "thatch" as organic fertilizer that you just took away from your lawn. I don't think that was thatch, but it's still not available to the lawn anymore. Some grasses can be killed out by dethatching, so we need to know what you have before you go any farther. Core aeration is unnecessary for seeding and very, VERY rarely necessary for any other reason. Whatever issue your lawn has that you think requires core aeration probably has a better solution. That grass with the dime looks far too dense to be fescue. And it looks coarse bladed to me. Can you dig down through the grass and tell whether you see runners across the surface? Really need to know where you live.

I live in Southern Pennsylvania, it's a mix of perrennial rye, tall fescue and Kentucky blue grass, overseeded with a mix of Kentucky blue grass and perrennial rye. I haven't watered yet this season but during the summer I use a RainBird impact sprinkler and try to get about an inch down every week, watering 3 separate times a week. But I'm not extremely regimented about watering. The only fertilizer I've put down so far is Turf Builder with Halts and Grub Ex. I've started mowing at 3-3.5 inches this spring with a lawn striper.