High-maintenance lawns require 3 or 4 applications of fertilizers each season. Low-maintenance lawns need only 1 or 2 feedings. After you decide which type of lawn you have, consider if you want to use herbicides for weed control. Then choose the product that will suit your needs. Bachman's Starter formula is lower in nitrogen and high in phosporus to will encourage good root development.
Herbicides work several ways to kill unwanted weeds.
Weed and Feed contains a post-emergent herbicide, one that acts on weeds that already exist. Crabgrass Preventer contains pre-emergent herbicides that work by keeping seed from germinating and developing. Dry lawn fertilizer is easy to apply using either a rotary or drop spreader. Rotary spreaders have the advantage of covering wide areas with each pass. Drop spreaders are more accurate, but requires more walking.