I'm just a little farther along than you in the same type of project. I am getting ready to plant 20,000 sf of grass in very rocky soil and have worked it over pretty well. I only need to install the sprinkler system and then do the final grade before hydro-seeding.

First off, I highly recommend getting a box blade and landscape rake. My boxblade was invaluable for spreading soil and rough grading and there are many other uses I will have for it in the future as well. My landscape rake took some getting used to but also turned out to be a nice thing to have. The first time I used it the soil was pretty loose and I thought I had wasted my money on it since it seemed to collect as much dirt as rocks. When the soil compacted after a few rains however, I was able to collect the last remaining surface rocks and leave a very nicely contoured finish with the rake. It was level enough to be planted right then but I needed to till in some amendments to the soil first which leads me to my next to recommendations.

First, make sure there is some moisture in the ground before working it. When I tilled yesterday the ground was very dry and I was left with a fluffy mess of dirt. Now I need to run a sprinkler to get some moisture in it so I can grade it again and get it somewhat compacted. Second, I recommend getting a soil test of both the new and old soil. After investing as much as you will in your yard you don't want to discover that your soil is out of balance and can't support a nice lawn. Some deficiencies can easily be treated after planting grass but some cannot. In my case I had to add phosphrous to the soil which I was told is almost impossible to increase the phosphorous level of the soil without tilling it in before planting.

Other than that I don't know what else to tell you. It is pretty remarkable what you can do with the box blade/FEL combo. Add the landscape rake to that and I think you've got everything you would need to get that lawn planted. A harrow or skid or chain link fence section might be nice to get a good final grade as well but not necessary in my opinion with the landscape reake. Just remember to make multiple passes in different directions and try to get it as level as possible. You may want to run a sprinkler if it doesn't rain much to both help compact the soil and also to show where the water puddles up and you need to level more. Hope this helps a little.

Matt

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