Not sure about the grass - looks southern/warm season to me - but the weeds are violet and chickweed.

Thanks for this... Yes, I'm in the Atlanta area, so it would be southern / warm season grass.

I'm going with centipede. Here's a picture comparing centipede (upper) with St Augustine (lower).

They both spread by runners (stolons) above the ground. Centipede usually needs no fertilizer and grows in the worst of the bad soils. If your soil is acidic, then centipede will do better than any other grass. If your soil is not particularly acidic, then you could probably grow any of the warm season grasses. Centipede thrives when mowed at the mower's lowest setting while St Augustine thrives at the mower's highest setting.

I find that St Augustine is the easiest to have success with. When deep watered regularly and mowed high, it crowds out all but a few grassy weeds including bermuda. It is troubled by dichondra (in the first picture bottom right of center), clover, and other broadleaf weeds, but those can be killed out or plucked if they are not established.

Great to see you taking the reins on your lawn care! I agree with the comment above from dchall_san_antonio - you've got Centipede. That's a good choice for Atlanta, it tends to do well in your climate.

Now, since you're going with the UGA's Lawn Calendar (nice pick by the way, those folks know their stuff), you'll want to follow their guidelines for Centipede grass.

Fertilization should be lighter than for other grass types, too much can actually harm Centipede grass. Look for a fertilizer with a 1-0-1 ratio, that should do the trick.

As for weed control, pre-emergent in early spring and late summer can help keep those pesky weeds at bay. Post-emergent can be used for any stubborn weeds that slip through.

Products-wise, you'll want to find a reputable garden store near you and they will be able help you find the right fertilizers and weed control products.

Good luck, and remember, a happy lawn is a patient gardener's reward!

We used to have a bermuda expert on this forum who kidded that the proper fertilization routine for centipede was to get a cheap bag of 10-10-10, dump out all the fertilizer, and drag the empty bag around on the lawn.

There is one weed control product that works like magic for centipede and St Aug lawns. Here's a pic. Actually it is the atrazine that is the magic.

This will kill every weed with the exception of bermuda. It seems to kill the seeds, too, so you do not have to reapply in 2 weeks to get new weeds. In fact the label says to not repeat the application, so read that all thoroughly. When I use it I make sure the wind is at my back and I walk backwards so I don't have to walk through the wet grass. Atrazine is no joke. Normally you would apply this in mid April, so if you're going to use it, use it fast. You can find it at Walmart. Also it takes a full 3 weeks for all the weeds to die, so don't get anxious if you don't see overnight results.