317 



will grow with more or less success in most parts of the 

 State. It can now be called one of the wild species of Ala- 

 bama, since it is growing at will in Middle and Southern 

 Alabama. 



Kentucky Blue Grass {Poa 2yfcite7isis, Linn). — It is a 

 waste of time and money to place this grass in soils which 

 are exposed to hot summer suns, because it can not stand 

 successfully the continued heat. But in yards where there 

 is ample shade produced by oaks, elms and other trees, ex- 

 cepting pines and cedars, it will thrive well and will produce 

 a lawn not to be surpassed in beauty of color and texture by 

 any other grasses. An advantage it has, that is one of special 

 merit, is the green color it retains through most of the winter 

 and the early, vigorous growth it puts on in the early sprmg 

 before any other grasses are showing any life. 



St. Augustine Grass (Stetiotcqyhrum dimidiatiim, Linn. 

 Brongn). — In Charleston, S.C., and also in portions of Florida 

 this grass is favorably thought of for lawns. It produces a 

 larger blade than the preceding grasses. It readily takes root 

 at the joints of the creeping stems and soon covers the sur- 

 face with an even sward. This grass prefers the climate 

 near the coast and will grow well in sandy soils. No experi- 

 ments have been made with the St. Augustine grass at the 

 Alabama Experiment Station, but the reports made to the 

 author by reliable parties living in Jacksonville, Fla., and 

 Charleston, S. C, satisfactorily estabhshed the plant as a 

 desirable lawn grass for the coast region. It can be propa- 

 gated by sets or cuttings by sowing the seeds in drills from 

 which, after the first season, the sets may be taken and placed 

 in the soil where the lawn is to be made. 



The best time for sowing the seed of grass or planting 

 the sod is in the late fall or in December. Favorable results, 

 however, may be obtained sometimes by seeding in the early 

 spring, provided the following summer is not too dry. The 

 diflQculty in spring planting consists in the inability of the 

 young and tender plant to withstand the late spring and early 

 summer heat before the roots have had time to penetrate 

 deep into the soil and supply the needed moisture. On the 

 other hand, when the seeding takes place in the fall or early 

 winter the growth obtained by the plants gives them suffi- 

 cient strength to withstand the heat of spring and summer, 



