rill: c.\i<ni:.\i:R's momiii.v 



[ luhnian. 



I wisli Id oflor :i lew rcHiarks. oxprt'ssinj; no 

 iit'w iili-as, prrlKips, ]»r<ih;il)ly iintliiiii: of merit 

 and certainly no llunry, Imi (Iniun fnnu tiic 

 bdok of fxporifiiiH'. the lessons tVuin uliicli are 

 usnally well remembered. 



It would, oi" course, l»e folly to expt-et a j^ood 

 lastiuLjsod ou land which needs draining; ivpially 

 so from seeding down poor, stifV clay on land 

 with a southern exposure, where the beams of 

 a tropical sun pour down its fiery rays day after 

 day for two or three months in the year. In 

 preparing ground for a lawn, some prefer to take 

 a crop; but a Summer fallow, with early Fall 

 seeding, is preferable, according to my experi- 

 ence. In the first place, weed seeds can be per- 

 • suaded into growth more readily by giving the 

 ground a harrowing, as soon as dry enough, after 

 every shower, finishing with a light rolling, 

 which can only be done, of coui-se, when the 

 land is clear of a crop. As to subsoiling, trench- 

 ing, &c., as a general rule, I care very little to 

 what depth the earth be loosened, provided the 

 rule of keeping the surface soil at the top be 

 rigidly adhered to. The writer has seen land 

 deteriorated as much by subsoiling — that is, by 

 breaking up the subsoil and leaving it in the 

 same place when in improper condition as by 

 bringing it to the surface. Whenever the subsoil 

 breaks up in lumps it is safe to leave it alone as 

 hard pan, and get six inches of surface-soil in 

 thorough condition. 



There is a considerable difference of opinion 

 as to the best kinds of grass, the proportion pf 

 each, and quantity to use per acre, &c. I sow 

 grass seed, for all purposes, tliicker than is usual, 

 and for lawn sow narrowcast, strictl}^ to. a mark, 

 twice in a place, and both w^ays of the ground, 

 using more white clover than many gardeners 

 think necessary. My reason is, white clover 

 can hold its own against most of the stolonifer- 

 ous grasses as well as against the lawn mower. 

 Panicum sanguineum is a troublesome grass in 

 late Summer and early Autumn, and although 

 au annual, manages to increase yearly in almost 

 every lawn where it once gets foothold. Its seed 

 stems go creeping along so near the ground that 

 the lawn mower fails to take the head off. 

 When a lawn is mown with a scythe the seeds of 

 this kind of grSss is more likely to be cut off, as 

 the raking up of the cut grass pulls up the heads 

 of stoloniferous grasses. As this makes things 

 appear rather rough, the scythe is brushed over 

 the lawn again, taking off what was before 

 missed, and just what our lawn mowers miss 



also. It is possible that we may lind on careful 

 examination tiiat our lawns do not deteriorate 

 under the lawn mowers in consequence of their 

 close cutting propensities, but rather because 

 they give those grasses whose stems creep along 

 the ground and emit roots the advantage over 

 their more upright growing congeners. The 

 Winter care of lawns depends on circumstances. 

 It is better to nni flu' risk of putting a litth- 

 weed seed on tlie lawn tliaii to forego the benefit 

 of manuring wherever it is considered necessary. 

 Dandelions and plantains nuist be cut out when- 

 ever they appear. The former is easil}- eradi 

 cated in early Spring, just when coming into 

 flower. Of course every one admits the neces- 

 sity of thoroughly rolling lawns when in proper 

 condition, yet this is much oftener preached 

 than praciised. The mower should be put 

 to work as early in the Spring as the grass can 

 be cut, setting to cut very low the first time. If, 

 during the di'ougth of Summer, it becomes neces- 

 j sary to run the machine oftener than would 

 ' otherwise be desirable on account of some kinds 

 I of gi-ass growing faster than others, set it to cut 

 quite high. This gives the grass a more even 

 ; appearance without exposing the roots so much. 

 Cut the grass so often at all seasons, if possible, 

 that there may never be necessity for taking off 

 ! anything which is cut. 



'• I have often heard the remark that our lawns 



! will not bear comparison with English lawns. 



Admitted; but I have seen in Uncle Sam's 



garden-patch Indian com, tomatoes, melons, 



j cantaloupes, &c., growing with a wild luxuriance 



j that our English cousins cannot equal even under 



' glass ; and I have also seen law^ns and pastures 



get so badl)' scorched "over the water" as to 



I show that the usual beauty of their lawns was 



not entirely owing to the skill of the gardener. 



' What most concerns us is to find out what kind 



; of grasses withstand the drought of our Summers. 



! If they happen to be a little coarse we must 



endeavor to get accustomed to it. It is far more 



pleasant to look upon a lawn that is green the 



whole Summer, besides being more comfortable 



to w^alk upon, than one which is brown and burnt 



a considerable part of the season, even if it is 



not composed of the finer growing grasses. 



Now, a word as to lawn mowers : For sim- 

 plicity, ease of operation and facility for repairs, 

 I have seen nothing equal to the Philadelphia. 

 There are several machines which do good work, 

 and so far as the horse machines go, ease of 

 draught is, perlmps, of less consequence than 



