Weeds taking over the lawn!

Hi Paul,

A few months back I wrote in desperation for my lawn.  I took your advice and planted cowpeas!! They are now about a foot and a half high, but we did a bad job spreading the seed so only my front lawn grew nice crop!  The back is spotty and the rest has filled back in with CRAZY weeds!  They are puffing and I am sure my neighbors hate me at this point!!  Also, the"grass|" that has filled in the bare spots is debatable.  I am not quite sure.  Which leads me to my predicament.  What now!??  How do I eradicate the weeds? What do I do with my cowpeas? Is there any hope?  I desperately want a halfway decent looking yard at 6this point and feel so defeated!  I feel very passionate about my chem-free quest, I am just very stuck!!  PLEASE HELP!!
Thank you as usual for your great advice, hope to hear something soon.

~GRASSYGIRL~

So the front lawn has a huge cowpea crop?  Are they ready to be harvested yet?

Do you have access to a tiller? 

Is the front lawn now weed free - with the cowpeas smothering all of the weeds?

As for the back yard - if you want to try this sort of thing again, you can plant peas (not cowpeas).  Peas are a cool season crop and will survive mild frosts.  Cowpeas are a warm season crop and will not survive any frost.

Well they are not quite ready to harvest.  Yes I have a tiller, and if I were to plant peas in the back then do i till that and then plant?  Is there any other way to get a lawn or de-weed otherwise?

Yes I have a tiller, and if I were to plant peas in the back then do i till that and then plant?

If you till first, you will get a better crop (which will do a better job of smothering weeds and building the soil). 

Is there any other way to get a lawn or de-weed otherwise?

Yes!  There are many, many ways!  I just think this one is the most fun!  You build the soil and smother weeds at the same time. 

Paul,

i have a Creeping Charlie epidemic in my backyard. I have tried everything short of agent orange....what can i do?

Wolfie

Are you already mowing high?  Watering infrequently?  Fertilizing?