Yuk don't use herbicides. Environmental disaster. There are "pre emergent" treatments that can inhibit weed seed germination in the spring. You could plant a winter cover crop like winter rye or red clover that you turn under in spring to add nitrogen and build the soil. Would also look better and keep down dust and erosion

Geographic location? Other details? Including more about site conditions and what you want to do with the site.

Idk gardengal I had hoped that the "natural" lawn care company I used to use was right when they said the pre-emergent they used was an oil that was otherwise pretty environmentally friendly, but I stopped using them because I realized a lot of what they were pushing waS lions in lambskin. I would never ever use weed killers personally. I am a beekeeper and keeping bees alive in the suburbs is a struggle due to the casual approach to chemicals :( I actually like a fairly diverse lawn anyway.

The best defense against weeds is early seeding, get that lawn in before the soil gets warm enough for crabgrass and it won't stand a chance afainst a well maintained lawn.

so I live in NJ, and am pretty new to all of this...are you saying that the weeds will go away on there own if I take care of the lawn in the spring?

and planting a winter crop..I would do that in the rocky soil or lay down mulch first as gardengal48 recommends?

also what kind of mulch do you recommend?

You don't put mulch on a lawn. Period. Pointless.

In NJ most of the weeds will die in the winter. In the spring, you can spread corn gluten meal, which will stop seeds--any seeds--from sprouting. So you can't spread grass seed before (and about 6 weeks after, if I remember correctly)

and tehn I would lay new soil and plant grass about 2 months later?

I'd say it depends on whether your "lawn" has enough grass to preserve or if it will be better to start anew. If the latter, I'd make use of the winter to improve the soil by dumping all the leaves you can on it, even better if chopped up with a mower. In the spring you'll turn it all in, rake and pick out the rocks, and sow fresh seed. Sowing the cover crop is also a viable alternative. Same process in the spring. Stay away from the chemicals at least until you know exactly what you are attacking. Add my voice to the beekeeper. The last thing you and the rest of us need is another herbicide-addicted neighbor. You can do it the right way. Patience and knowledge!

the cover crop can go in now-time is of the essence though, the seedlings can't handle the hard frost, I the spring your builder should bring in 4" of loam and seed. Right on top of cover crop and leaves are a great idea too.

To advise on the specifics of what you should do requires specific knowledge of the current site conditions. I agree with Gardengal that the comments about herbicides being an "environmental disaster" is a significant overstatement. The common herbicides degrade into harmless substances a relatively short amount of time. If they didn't, we wouldn't be able to use them since, in the landscape industry, we want a lot of plant to not be killed or injured. Many of us have seen how, sometimes, adjacent plants might get a small amount of accidental exposure to Round-up. It manifests in deformed stems and leaves for 3 or 4 weeks and then it is over with and the plant returns to normal growth. As far as its danger to wildlife, I'd have to see a legitimate, unbiased, scholarly research paper that demonstrates certified proof before having a willingness to accept it. It is common to see unsubstantiated claims based on fear, not knowledge, as many people are satisfied with just being afraid. I'm not saying negative issues are not possible ... just that they need to be proven before being believed.

And I, too, found the comment about pre-emergents, to be somehow now included with other herbicides, to be worth a yuk. These days, it is common to market things based on what people want to hear. I can't imagine an effective pre-emergent that was not an herbicide. Speculating now, I'd be willing to bet that much of the food sold as "organic" for a 20% increase in not in any way different from what is sold elsewhere in the grocery store, for less, since this is a relatively loose and unregulated market.

Yaardvark roundup is now found in CHEERIOS. It is now found in organic foods due to drift and waterway contamination. Call it fear, I call it obvious. Guzzling chemicals in to the ground is just ridiculous, lazy, and finding any peer reviewed work NOT influenced by Big Chemical is tough. Burden should be on THEM. To say that something "breaks down" into harmless sub-compounds just because you don't see it any more or because it has dissipated enough not to kill adjacent plants ignores proof and again, common sense.

Although I'm a Kitchen Designer I make my hobbie landscaping. I would recommend amending your yard then rototiller, level and wait till spring. This is something you can do now and then get a jump on early spring.

That so many parts per million or billion are "found" in something is not proof that it is actually causing harm or even close to it. part of the issue is that we can measure what couldn't previously be measured. There's probably 2 parts per billion of gold in Cheerios, too. It just doesn't mean much. That the vast majority of people are living twice as long as they did when everything was "natural' is a good reason to calm down about it. Actually, chemicals (not herbicides, but other pesticides) are a large part of the reason people are living longer. "Guzzling chemicals in to to the ground" and such wildly inaccurate descriptions of what is really happening, and not finding unemotional peer reviewed articles is good enough reason to go on living in a calm, unstressed way. I know this argument will go on forever.

You can't have it both ways. Either "herbicides degrade into harmless substances a relatively short amount of time" OR a few parts per "million or billion" end up in our food. Iroundup has been banned in many countries and has been proven to be harmful in "unemotional " research. Go ahead and use it, it won't be banned here any time soon.

this was a fascinating read about the lengths industry will go to keep us from even questioning the safety of their products. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/02/10/a-valuable-reputation/amp

Wow, I see there are some strong opinions on this stuff!thank you all for your help!

Yes we do have strong opinions on this. I’m sure there are even still gardeners who are skeptics on climate change. You have just become a homeowner which makes you an actual steward of a piece of earth. I hope you take the responsibility seriously.

I have no opinions any more on herbicides. Having said that, if you use one now, you'll still get a bunch of weeds next spring. Just wait. In fact you could nurture the plants growing now (the weeds) and let them keep the soil loose for you. Plant a winter cover crop to help that along. Then in the spring deal with the weeds and cover crop as if they were all weeds.

Don't rototill now or ever if you're planning on grass. I need to get pictures of my neighbor's lawn. He tilled and put down bermuda sod. It looks awful and it's only been a few weeks. The proper way to prepare the soil is to use a tractor, not a bobcat or skidsteer, with a box blade attachment. For one house the entire process would take less than a morning. If you are paying by the hour, and you are, go for the tractor/box blade combo. My neighbor used a bobcat with a front end loader. Looks awful.

Don't add more soil unless and until you can verify that you have low spots which need more soil. Landscapers are pretty good at determining this. But don't add topsoil because the soil you have looks bad. It can always be fixed with some of the suggestions already posted (mulch and/ore organic fertilizers but also soil testing). You don't need to 'work in' anything into the soil. The important things to have in the soil are the microbes. Feed them with organic fertilizers and you're good to go.

Spring is a poor time of year to plant new grass by seed. Why? Because spring is the time when crabgrass seed sprouts. It sprouts faster than turf grass seed giving you false hope that you did a good job with the grass seed. The other reason not to seed in the spring is the new grass roots are too tender for the summer heat. By July you will have a yard full of crabgrass. Crabgrass is a summer annual plant with special adaptations that allow it to grow fast, spread fast, and not die in the summer heat.

Thank you this was very helpful...so when is the best time to plant new grass seed?

Fall is best so you will be seeding again in fall. IDK about rototilling in the fall but in the spring it turns up dormant weed seeds. I tried this on out corner (city owned) sowed wildflower seeds. ALL that came up was crabgrass. Crabgrass isn't the worst thing in the world, it will keep down erosion and keep the soil heathy and look green until you can seed again in the fall. as I said before it is very easy for a strong lawn to compete with it and win. Good luck!!

Thanks so much for your help!

The best time to plant varies with type of grass and where you are. In my region, mid-September is best, but with regular watering and a light mulch, I have seen lawns seeded at various times during the growing season. I have been told that for certain types of lawn in the south, spring is best.

There is a lawn forum that might be a better place for this discussion. Be sure to give your location to get helpful information.

[https://www.houzz.com/discussions/lawn-care-forum-dsbr0-bd~t_29946[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/lawn-care-forum-dsbr0-bd~t_29946-forum-dsbr0-bd~t_29946)

I would try to clean up the yard. Rake up as much rock and gravel as you can. Clean out any construction debris you can. Pull or chop any large weeds.

You need to talk to the builder. Find out what he's doing with the landscaping. If he plans to put in $20, 000 in landscaping then you want to sit back and enjoy the new house.

If his plans are to let you finish up the job, then I'd consider aerating the lawn, when done I'd consider covering the future lawn area's with perhaps an inch ofr mushroom manure, or horse manure. I'd also put down a good cover of lime if you live in an area with acid soil. Any area green house will know. If in the area you need lime, anyone who grows will know. The lime and manure will tend to soak into the holes you punched with the aerator. Put down the lime before the manure.

It's getting kinda late to plant grass seed. I did it once in mid December ( USDA zone 6a ) and it sprouted, but only because we got a week long warm spell. But I wouldn't gamble a lot of money in grass seed. If you decide to put down some grass seed, sow it before you spread the mushroom compost/manure.

You could also mark off your garden beds and dig in a few inches of mushroom compost or manure.

Enjoy your new home.

Thank you!