WEEDS IN LAWNS 203 



other perennial plants gain a foothold; but the 

 area should be mown frequently with a lawn- 

 mower. The weeds, being annuals, will die at the 

 approach of cold, and they are kept down by the 

 use of the lawn-mower, while the grass is not 

 injured. As soon as the grass begins to fill the 

 land, the weeds are crowded out. It rarely 

 happens that every portion of the lawn will have 

 an equal catch of grass. The bare or sparsely 

 seeded places should be sown again every fall and 

 spring until the lawn is finally complete. 



Lawns which have a heavy cover of sod are 

 rarely troubled with weeds. It is commonly said 

 that weeds run out the grass; the fact is that grass 

 is run out by poor soil, insufficient seeding, care- 

 less preparation of the land, or some other fault, 

 and the weeds take the opportunity to fill the 

 vacant places. The proper way to keep the weeds 

 out of the lawn, therefore, is not primarily to pull 

 the weeds, but to put in more grass. If a dande- 

 lion is pulled, the hole must be filled or some weed 

 may grow therein. The remedy, therefore, is to 

 rake over the thin places vigorously with a steel 

 garden rake, apply commercial fertilizers, and sow 

 more grass seed; and this, as a rule, will correct 

 .the difficulty. Lawns of several acres which be- 

 come thin and mossy may be treated in essentially 

 the same way by dragging them with a spike-tooth 

 harrow in early spring as soon as the land is 

 dry enough to hold a team. Chemical fertilizers 



