Lawns and Tennis Grounds from Seed 



plot, putting the retentive portion at the bottom, and reserving the 

 finer and more friable loam for the top. To make up one part of 

 the ground entirely with loamy clay, and another part with light 

 loam, will result in a patchy appearance, because each soil fosters 

 those grasses which possess affinities for it. 



In order to insure a perfectly level surface, pegs must be driven 

 into the soil at the extreme points, and intermediate pegs at regular 

 distances between. The pegs can be accurately adjusted by means 

 of a long piece of wood having a straight edge, on which a spirit 

 level can be placed. By shifting the wooden straight-edge from peg 

 to peg the level of the whole area can be efficiently tested. 



"Weed Seeds in Soil. A serious danger to which strange soil 

 is liable is the presence of seeds of troublesome weeds. The only 

 certain way of ridding soil of these pests is to burn it. This opera- 

 tion is well understood by agriculturists, and we should like to 

 insist upon it as not only essential when adding strange soil upon 

 which a lawn is to be made, but highly desirable when the land 

 is a stiff clay, in which case burning is often worth undertaking for 

 the beneficial effect it has on the growth of grass. The disintegra- 

 tion of the clay, which is one of the good effects of burning, may to 

 some extent be obtained by simply digging the ground in autumn 

 and leaving it rough for frosts to break down and sweeten. But we 

 are not unmindful that practices which are permissible on a farm 

 would not be tolerated in the majority of gardens. The farm is in 

 the open country, where smouldering fires are not regarded as a 

 nuisance. Near a town they may call forth a storm of remonstrance. 

 Should the proximity of dwellings render burning impracticable, the 

 only alternative as regards the weeds is to allow their seeds plenty of 

 time to germinate, and to destroy successive crops by light hoeings 

 in dry weather. Waiting for the appearance of weeds may be 

 extremely vexatious when the land has been prepared and the season 

 is passing away. Still, it will prove a real saving both of time and 

 labour to ensure a clean seed-bed. After grasses are sown the soil 

 must not be disturbed, and atmospheric conditions may follow which 

 retard the germination of the grasses, but do not hinder the growth 

 of weeds. The latter rob the soil of its moisture, choke the rising 

 grasses, and too often doom the sowing to failure. Those who are 

 practically acquainted with gardening know that land which has 

 been regularly cultivated for years, and is supposed to be fairly 

 clean, always produces a plentiful crop of weeds, although no seed 

 whatever be sown ; yet many a faultless lot of grass seed has been 



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