Nice grass, but you need to post close up pics if you want it identified, or you can use the internet to ID your grass. It could be KBG, tall fescue, perennial rye, fine fescue, or a mixture of grasses.

- What do I need to apply to my lawn, how much, and how often (fertilizer, lime?)
Only a soil test will tell you what your soil is lacking, especially your liming requirements. I recommend the basic soil test of Logan Labs (www.loganlabs.com)

- Do I need to aerate my lawn? If so, at what time?
Generally you don't unless you lawn is severly compacted, or has very poor drainage. Your soil test will give you some ID of your soil structure, as would a jar test which you can do yourself.

- Do I need to seed? There are no bald patches on the lawn as it stands.
If you have KBG, then seeding will be unecessary unless you have a large amount of stand loss. Perennial rye and tall fescue need periodic overseeding if you have stand loss since those two grasses don't really spread all that much. Since you have no voids, seeding isn't necessary. If you do intend to seed, it should be done in late summer/early fall.

- How often should I water (given my location)? When should I start watering?
There is no really set answer for this. Water when your grass needs it is somewhat vague, but it's appropriate. Most grass shows drought stress by becoming darker in color as the blades fold up to conserve water. Most recommendations for watering is one inch per week in late spring through summer. This one inch should be put down in one to two watering sessions i.e. one inch on Sundays, or half an inch on Sunday and Wed. Of course if it rains you have to factor that into the equation. If you have very sandy soil or poor drainage those rules will have to be altered. Also areas near driveways or stone walls often need extra irrigation as they can dry out quickly in the summer.
- How long should I cut the grass to?
Another area of debate. I generally defer to what the seed producers and universities say. It also depends on the grass type you have. Tall fescue is generally recommended 2-3 inches. Perennial rye and KBG can be cut a bit lower 2-2.5. In the summer you can let it get a bit longer to combat summer stress. If you are due for a long period of rain it helps to cut right before and a bit shorter than usual. When cutting remove only 1/3 of the blade, and always use a sharp blade. So if you want to cut your grass to 3 inches, then do so when it is about 4 inches tall. I sharpen my blade a lot, but once every month or so would be great.

- What other treatments/applications/processes am I missing? Not much. Most of your fertilizing should be done in late summer and fall. Don't fertilize early in spring. I generally use organic fertilzers in the spring but if you want to apply a synthetic in spring then wait till around Memorial day. Don't ever use weed and feed products. If you want to kill weeds, use a herbicide. If you want to fertilize, use fertilizer. Weed and feed is only good for one thing, generating profits for the fertilizer companies.

It is pretty early in the lawn season, so you really don't need to do much. Spot spray or hand pick any weeds you don't want in your lawn. As temps warm up you can apply an organic fertilizer. I generally use Milorganite as it's fairly inexpensive, and easy to use. If you are in the Boston area you can buy something called Bay State, but you have to actually go to the plant that makes it. Others use various grains to feed the lawn and soil.

Thanks a ton for this info, I will send out for a soil test and post the results here.