Repairing lawn plan of attack

Bought a house a few years back and I have lawn issues. First of all I have a lot of trees surrounding my property so I do have a shade condition. My front yard has a lot of moss growing in it, probably 90% moss coverage and 10% sparse grass. My backyard has moss patches here and there but more grass. I do have quite a bit of plantain and other broad leaf pests as well. I assume the moss tells me I either have to much shade or i need to increase the pH of my lawn with lime? The plantain I guess is a compaction issue? I have a core aerator and I plan on doing that this spring but I need a plan of attack so I can make sure I get a good start to the season. Should I put down a weed and feed type product and wait a few weeks to aerate and over seed? I have some quinclorac for my sprayer so I wasn't sure if that is something I should use now or wait until later. Or should I just lime like crazy then over seed my lawn? I know a soil test is vital but after I get my results I would like to know in what direction I should go. Thanks!

 

The first thing you might want to do is provide a location, not a street address obviously, but enough for people to have an idea of what neck of the woods you're in. Secondly, I definitely agree with getting a soil analysis. An abundance of shade seems very likely to be a factor, but before tossing weed and feed or anything else at it I think that it is very worthwhile to know exactly what you're dealing with.

 

Pedro gave you good advice. That said, shade and grass generally don't go together and I think the fact you have moss should be a red flag that you're going to have trouble growing grass and should either think about removing some trees or find a suitable ground cover.

 

Personally, I'd opt for some ground cover and only think about removing trees that might be diseased or dying. Cutting down too many trees is one of the reasons for climate change, so I wouldn't want to add to that.

 

My back yard [if a strip of ground between the house and fence constitutes a yard] won't grow anything but moss. Lack of good soil and all shade are the reasons why.

 

I am in Northern NJ so I think that is zone 6 if I am looking at the map right. I will get a soil test asap. Thanks guys!

 

Yes, a soil test is a good idea. I would not spend any money on treatments until you have the results.

Likely your biggest problem is going to be sunlight. Grass, even shade tolerant varieties need a lot of sun. If you wish to keep the trees and the shade they provide start looking into true shade tolerant options whether it be plants or hardscape.

 

Yep, save your money, grass wont grow in shade and moss wont grow in sun!