54 



HORTICULTURE 



July 19, 1919 



GRASS SEEDS FOR GOLF COURSES AND LAWNS 



RECLEANED CREEPING BENT 



CRESTED DOGSTAIL, CHEWING FESCUE 



SHEEP FESCUE FANCY CLEAN RED TOP 



KENTUCKY BLUE GRASS 



ALSO 



COMPLETE LINE OF LAWN FERTILIZERS 



SHEEP MANURE SCOTCH SOOT 



WOOD ASHES AGRICULTURAL CHEMICALS 



JOSEPH BRECK & SONS 



(CORPORATION) 



Seeds, Bulbs, Plants 



51-52 North Market Street, Boston, Mass. 



BRECK ROBINSON NURSERY CO. 



Monroe Station, Lexington, Mass. 



Varieties to Grow — Since the dissem- 

 ination of the Spencer type I have 

 grown practically every variety that 

 came along. I have done this because 

 I have got a great deal of personal 

 enjoyment in seeing the new ones 

 come into flower, but as money makers 

 there are only a few; in fact, my sales- 

 man says to me, and has done so for 

 years, "Grow only Christmas Pink." 

 This is a color that takes with the 

 great masses and if good, can always 

 be sold in any quantity. Venus would 

 be my second choice, being the finest 

 formed flower of any; the color is 

 blush pink. It is an immense cropper, 

 producing more flowers than any vari- 

 ety I have grown. Mrs. Skaach would 

 be my next selection, the color much 

 like Countess Spencer. White Orchid 

 comes next, being the best white I 

 have yet grown. There are a few more 

 worthy of growing such as Mrs. Chas. 

 Zvolanek, lavender; Belgian Hero, 

 orange; but what the public most de- 

 sire are the first named one and the 

 next four. 



Marketing. — Boston being the con- 

 sumer of practically all my Sweet 

 Peas, the bunch required here is one 

 containing 25 sprays with an average 

 of three blooms to the spray. Should 

 the number of blooms to the spray be 



lacking, 30 or more sprays should be 

 used, making a uniform sized bunch. 

 Pickers of Sweet Peas never count 

 more than a few times; they get to 

 know the size without counting. I 

 have never made a practice of grading 

 the blooms. A much nicer bunch can 

 be made if a few shorter stemmed 

 sprays are put in the front of the 

 bunch, with the longer stems at the 

 back. Of course, growers of Sweet 

 Peas know that at a certain period of 

 the crop the stems are longest; after 

 this period the length of stem gradual- 

 ly shortens, so that a crop at its best 

 is a grade or two better than one that 

 is past its best. 



FALL LAWN SEEDING. 



Much interest is being shown in the 

 making of lawns in the fall or late 

 summer. In his admirable book. The 

 Florists' Manual, Wm. Scott writes as 

 follows: 



Where there is any quantity of lawn 

 to make or renew, seeding is always 

 preferable to sodding. Not alone does 

 it make a better looking lawn, better 

 grass and better quality all around. 

 but it is far cheaper. The same care 

 in digging deep and manuring is es- 

 sential, and the top two inches of sur- 

 face should be of good, friable soil, 



that the delicate little plants may get 

 a good start. 



The very best time of the whole year 

 to seed a lawn is from the last of 

 August to the middle of September; 

 even a little earlier in August is all 

 right. We are almost sure to get some 

 showers the last of August, and if 

 within reach of the hose you are not 

 dependent on showers, and if sown at 

 that time or very early in September 

 you have a lawn well established be- 

 fore winter sets in. 



In fall sowing, which is the best, 

 there is no need of sowing anything 

 with the grass seeds. Sometimes in 

 spring sowing a sprinkling of oats or 

 rye is sown, which germinates quickly, 

 and by its growth shades and protects 

 the little grass spears till they are up 

 a few inches. In a few weeks the oats 

 are mowed off with a scythe and the 

 grass takes care of itself. This, of 

 course, is quite unnecessary where you 

 sprinkle occasionally. Our climate is 

 uncertain — no two seasons alike — but 

 although I have seen many acres sown 

 for a lawn in August which was a dis- 

 appointment because there were no 

 rains, yet it is by far the surest and 

 best time to sow. 



There are many seedsmen, leading 

 firms, who give great attention to the 



