pre-emergent or starter/seed or both or neither

Brik

hello - I have a mixed situation with my yard and I am looking for advice.

Front - Well established grass, no major weed issues last year, a little crabgrass but under control, one small bare spot.

Rear - Patchy grass, dead grass in some areas, grows super fast in others. More weeds and crabgrass.

I am zone 6 as I recall (SE PA), soil test shows all ok, maybe a little high on nitrogen (last fall).

I would like to try for a spring planting of seed in back and one small bare spot in front. I will till and amend hard soil in bare spots and plant the seed.

Option 1 - Pre-emergent/fertalizer in front, no fixing bare spot. Seed back and starter fert.

Option 2 - Seed now, everywhere needed. No starter fert. Wait for new growth plus 3 weeks or so then pre-emergent.

Option 3 - Seed now, everywhere needed, starter fert, no pre-emergent, hand dig weeds as required.

Option 4 - ??? suggestions ???

Thanks

Robert131

If you use a pre-emergent for the weeds, you will have to wait 45-90 days to seed. If you seed first, definitely use a starter fertilizer. I'd rather have grass first, then work on the weeds next. With the correct temperatures, you can grow a stand of grass in 3-4 weeks. That should give you plenty of time to get a pre-emergent down for crabgrass. Annual weeds could be controlled with a post emergent like Trimec.

Brik

Thanks Robert - Thats what I was thinking. Get some grass growing in my bare spots now. Actually, I'm thinking of planting now (in the next week or two) although its still a bit cold. And once I get a few weeks of good growth to then, maybe, do the pre-emergent.
I actually have about a 6' area where my grass is a foot high but nothing else has started to grow. Go figure.

Thanks again for taking the time to reply.