I didn't get a response to a previous post so I'll try again. We have an area about 1500 sq. feet which was thoroughly killed off with Round Up. Tried using hand de-thatching rakes to remove dead vegetation and didn't make much progress - more diffcult to remove than we thought. Our plan now is to rent a dethatching power rake but then what? The soil is compacted - area was previously used as a vegetable garden and hasn't been planted with grass for decades. We could either rent a slit seeder or an aerator and then plant seed. Which is best? Never used any of this before.

Unfortunately we can't do this perfectly- soil testing, amendment, etc. We are in the middle of renovating two houses at the same time and need to do this quickly as time is running out. This will be a weekend job. Any suggestions?