You can't tie a preemergent weed controller to a date on the calendar. There has been a LOT of discussion about this topic over the years. For awhile, recognizing that timing was critically important to the success of the product, there was not much more than lamenting the inability to predict the time. Then one of the gurus suggested using one of Mother Nature's "whispers" to tell. The blooming of the forsythia plant was the time. Well, not everyone has forsythia. My personal refinement on timing is to apply it after the soil temps hit 50 degrees AND a spring rainstorm hits. The soil has to be warm enough and there has to be sufficient, sustained moisture for crabgrass to germinate. I strongly suspect these conditions precede the blooming of the forsythia, but I'm one who does not have that plant to go by. I do have a cherry tree down the road that always blooms in Feb, so I go by that. Then again I don't have a crabgrass problem so I don't use preemergents. If you use the shampoo two times separated by two weeks, you won't need the aerator. Normal soil is soft when wet and hard when dry. But it should soften again when it gets wet. So called, compacted soil, does not soften when wet. The problem that prevents the soil from softening is the lack of an adequate population of beneficial fungi in the soil. Deep watering with a little soap will create the environmental conditions to foster the rapid growth of these microbe helpers. Use only clear shampoo. The cloudy stuff has oils in it that do not help. My personal opinion is that spraying insecticide because you think you might have a problem is not helpful. There is an organic solution to grubs. It is called beneficial nematodes. These little guys bring an insect disease to the grubs and paralyze them. Then they feed on the insects and procreate. I get BN locally but the original source is this place in Colorado. Apply them with a hose-end sprayer. But first, apply about 3/4-inch of water (or a couple days of rainfall). The BN must have a film of water to move on. They cannot move in dry soil. So first get the soil wet, then apply the BN, then finish with another 1/4-inch of water. Milorganite is fine. I never use it because it has more heavy metals in it than alfalfa pellets (rabbit chow) and alfalfa is lower cost. Probably the reason you did not see any greening effect is you were starting with virgin soil. By next June the soil will be depleted enough to see a greening effect as well as the turf becoming more dense. Here is a demonstration photo showing the effect of alfalfa pellets on a zoysia lawn. This apparently is a very effective photo. I have had clerks at the local feed store tell me about more and more people coming in to get alfalfa pellets for their lawn. The alfalfa was applied in May 2011 and the photo taken in June. Organic fertilizers typically don't show results for 3 full weeks. If you are really indifferent about the soil test, then I would go to Logan Labs. You will get a better read on that test. If you search Google for "logan labs, andy, morpheuspa" you will find a place where you can get guru level help for free. They have been reading LL soil tests for many years. Do not add more topsoil unless you need to change the way your yard drains...because topsoil WILL change the way your yard drains. If you don't start with it right up against the house, then water will drain toward the house. If you do not have 4 full inches of foundation visible below the sill plate on your house, then you should be removing topsoil instead of bringing new soil in. The sill plate is the top of your foundation where the ground floor starts. As you can tell, I am not a fan of topsoil. Oh, and it always has weeds in it. When I need "topsoil" to fill a low spot, I get a local product that is 50/50 sand and "compost." What it really is is half sand and half fresh horse dung. That stuff is hotter than a pistol when it's delivered. Weed seeds cook off in such hot conditions for any amount of time. Plus the sand is very easy to deal with, spreads easily with no clods, and takes roots well. Compost is nice if you can get it for free. Use no more than 1 cubic yard per 1,000 square feet of lawn. For gardens you can pile it deep, but lawns will smother underneath compost. I see it in my neighborhood every year. There is one lawn that has not recovered in several years. Another keeps repeating the mistake every other year. Their lawn almost completely recovered from an app last spring before the grass stopped growing last week or so. It is sad to see the huge emphasis on compost by the radio show garden experts. They seem to recommend 2 cubic yards per thousand. That will smother even a bermuda lawn. In my neighborhood compost costs about $75 per yard to have it delivered. That means $75 per 1,000 square feet. Or I can apply alfalfa for about $5 per 1,000 square feet. I get a huge bang for the buck applying the alfalfa and almost nothing from compost. Add that to the agony of spreading compost and the possibility of smothering the lawn, and I just keep away from it. I can apply 15 apps of alfalfa for the cost of compost.

Correct. There are optional feedings in there depending on how you treat your lawn. Synthetic: Memorial Day, Labor Day, October 1 (optional), Winterization Organic: May 1, August 1 (optional), September 1, October 1, (optional) Winterization For synthetics, the optional one is often the difference between good and great (assuming the soil chemistry is reasonably balanced and tested). For organics, the optional ones are the difference between good, great, and fantastic (assuming the soil chemistry is reasonably balanced and tested). Which way (or a combination is also fine) to feed is up to you and I have no preference for others' lawns. Either organics or synthetics will produce a nice lawn, but I do think it's a good idea to feed organically at least once per year. Synthetics tend to tap organic material and eventually that can cause problems. >>Regardless of what product I use, don't use a WnF, just spot treat as they pop up? Correct. You can also blanket spray if you end up with a real problem over a wider area. That involves a hose end, set according to the bottle instructions. >>Also, do you recommend putting down a crabgrass preventer in the spring? I've read the best time is when forsythia are in bloom, is this part of the Memorial Day feeding or prior to? Yes, and I use one (Prodiamine), more to counter P. annua than anything else in my case. Usually that'll be much earlier than Memorial Day; the forsythia blossom in early April in my area.

Looks like a pretty good plan to me. Someone has been doing his reading. Where are you getting the seed? Are you going for hybrids? What is the goal here? Do you want a sports lawn? Do you want to keep the mud out of the house? Do you want the best looking lawn? What type of seed are you using? Choices are fescues, Kentucky bluegrass, and rye. Is there much shade in the lawn area? RoundUp should not hurt the other plants unless they get hit with overspray. It is taken up by the leaves. After you have flailed the ground with the rotorake, you will see the high and low spots. You could continue using the power rake on the high spots to loosen it and move that soil to the low spots. Do that until you have no more high spots. If you still need to fill low spots, use either topsoil or sand. Sand has the huge advantage of not getting cloddy. Drag any new soil around with a homemade drag. This is the tool used to clean up the surface on baseball fields and rodeo arenas. Make one with a 2x4 and some chain link fence. Drag that around by hand until the soil is perfect. Then throw the seed and roll it down. You can topdress with peat or compost if you feel the need.

Ive sprayed roundup on a large crabgrass plant and then threw tall fescue seeds onto it seconds later. By the time the crabgrass started to die, the fescue was germinating and taking advantage of the cover that the dying crabgrass plant provided.