The part of Oak Park I live in is not the high crime rate, low property value area. But lets stick to the lawn care please. On on overseeding, so I need to rake out or dig out the brown spots before laying down the overseed to the existing lawn? Also, as of today, I am starting to see tiny new lawn sticking out, so I guess the seeds (or at least some of them) did germinate properly. It's probably helping that I have a shade tree over the entire lawn so it doesn't get as hot or as dry when it's 90 outside. And I didn't see any suggestions on how to get rid of those weeds I pictured. What kind of plant is that and can I put something down that targets that plant?

If you take a look at photos I have posted on Cottage Garden-gallery (see "Things are starting to fill in") you will understand that I know from what I speak (my whole garden is a slope). When we bought this property many years ago, it was covered with maple trees which provided slightly less than total darkness under which nothing would grow (except weeds). I tackled this mess one area at a time. As my knowlege grew--so did the number and size of the beds. Try to do only what you can reasonably do well at the moment. You will have the time, however limited , to monitor your beds and watch for problems, happy accidents (like a volunteer seedling having planted itself). You will also learn if the plant choices you have made like the home you have provided them. This alone could save you a lot of frustration, time and financial investment. Having tried landscape fabric-difficult to keep in place,mulch tends to slide off (particularly in a hard rain). I prefer to use the 'lasagna method'. Lay down 8 layers of wet newspaper overlapping edges so weeds can't find a way through and cover with several inches of mulch (I find shredded bark works best because it will knit together and prevent sliding. Many local landfills provide this to the community at little to no cost.). Leave to overwinter. This method will not only help to control the weed problem, but will also add beneficial elements to the quality of the clay soil. Ask your friends and relatives if they would help you by saving their old newspapers for you (you will need quite a bit). I don't know the ages of your little ones, but if they are anything like my two kids were at toddler stage and up, there is nothing they would like more than helping mom and dad. Especially if it involves the opportunity to "play" in the water and get soaking wet outside. You could try this project on a hot summer day In the spring you can plant. What plants will depend on your light conditions. I hope this is helpful.

I have a saint augustine lawn which looks pretty good but I noticed some of the blades of grass look different than the others. The ones in questioned are green but the top of the blade is a lighter green and forms a point. One side of the blade has little spots which look like seeds almost. What is this? I am pretty new to taking care of a lawn so any help would be appreciated.

Love the NTP! forum. Thanks very much. (and I have no doubt you're right about the Oxalis...) Chickweed seems an interesting plant (but I'm not ready to try it in salad yet). Australia too? It seems to have very readily made its way from Europe to almost everywhere.