534 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS 



5 GEORGE v., A. 1915 



in some places was nothing less than a sand-knoll of the poorest type. The same 

 lawn at the present time offers many interesting problems in the maintainance of an 

 old lawn, the trial of the weed-killers now extensively advertised, the restoration of 

 areas winter-killed through the formation of ice, the effects of commercial fertilizers, 

 the effect of top-dressing with stable manure, etc. Although much information has 

 been obtained with regard to some of these points, the experiments now under way 

 will, it is hoped, supply much more needed information. Practical ways of watering 

 lawns economically and efficiently are also being investigated. 



The question then so frequently asked by many correspondents of the Experimental 

 Farm as to what is the best way to make a good lawn, is a very important question. 



The lawn is our outdoor carpet, and a very beautiful carpet it is, and upon it in 

 suitable positions are to be placed the garden furnishings, in the shape of shrubs, trees, 

 etc., which are to remain as fixed furniture for many years. 



A lawn, then, if for this reason alone, should be well made, but another equally 

 important reason for starting the lawn correctly, is that a good velvety lawn is more 

 delightful to walk upon than anything else, whereas, a poor-looking lawn is an eyesore 

 and a source of constant trouble. 



Lawn grasses are so classed because of a peculiar habit of growth which separates 

 them from among hundreds of other varieties. Often, however, these other varieties get 

 into lawns and cause trouble by producing patchy effects, due to a difference in the 

 habit of their growth. Burnt-looking patches, in dry spells, are often due to their 

 presence, although such patches may be the result of an uneven type of soil or uneven 

 water supply. This being the case suggests that in order to make a good lawn, the first 

 consideration is that of the two important factors of soil and seed. 



SOIL AND ITS PREPARATION. 



The soil for a good lawn, in respect of its quality, is not of vast importance. A very 

 poor piece of land, if properly prepared, will in a few years support a good lawn. Soils, 

 of course, are of many: types, but it may be best here to consider all soils as belonging 

 to one of three classes. These classes are: (1) heavy or clayey soils; (2) medium 

 loamy soils; and (3) light sandy soils. Soils belonging to the first and third classes 

 need more preparation than soils of the second class, that is, medium loamy soils. 



Soils of the first type, namely, heavy clay soils, should be first of all drained, if 

 possible. Drainage to a heavy soil is like fresh air to a stuffj- room. The oxygen in 

 the fresh air as it passes down through the soil, has exactly the same results on the 

 plant growth, as fresh air has on the human system. Oxygen or air is enabled to pass 

 through a drained soil more freely than through an undrained soil, because the water 

 in passing down to the drains below, leave channels through which air is sucked. In 

 many cases where drainage is not given, sickly growth or bad winter-killing of the 

 grasses results. 



Soils belonging to the second class, that is, medium loam soils, are the best soils 

 for lawns, and need little improvement before sowing the seed. 



Soils belonging to the third class, or sandy soils, are also fairly good soils for 

 lawns, when it is possible to add enough vegetable matter or barnyard manure to supply 

 plant food for several years. Such soils, however, dry out very quickly, and the 

 grasses are more liable to be injured by drought. Where good soil is procurable, it is 

 eafer to apply a top dressing, to such soils, of about 6 inches of good loam. 



GRADING^ LEVELLING AND SPECIAL PREPARATION. 



It may sometimes happen that the plot to be sown to lawn is very uneven in char- 

 acter. In such a case it has to be graded or levelled. 



In the act of levelling, care should be taken to take off the top layer of soil and 

 keep it by itself, ready to apply as a top dressing all over the freshly-graded parts 



Ottawa. 



