Lawns and Tennis Grounds from Seed 



from this cause the bed should be kept free from weeds until the 

 approach of autumn. Towards the end of August or beginning of 

 September rain and dew generally insure germination of the seed 

 and keep the young plant going. On the warm soil in autumn 

 the grass rises quickly and becomes fairly established before winter 

 sets in. 



Worm Casts. In a short time after sowing, the ground is often 

 thickly covered with casts thrown up by worms. We have no desire 

 to question the general service rendered by these lowly creatures, 

 but their movements in ground newly sown for a lawn are mis- 

 chievous, and the injury they cause will be greater in proportion to 

 the looseness of the soil. A well-made, firm seed-bed is less liable 

 to injury than one that has not been properly consolidated by the 

 roller. On old lawns the cast is thrown up from a well-defined 

 orifice seldom exceeding a quarter of an inch in diameter. Worms 

 loosen the soil of a newly made seed-bed for a considerable distance 

 round each burrow, and on this broken earth not a seed will 

 germinate. It would be comparatively unimportant if the casts were 

 few and far between, but frequently scores of them may be seen on 

 a pole of ground. 



When and how the casts should be dealt with is sometimes a 

 source of perplexity. A few days after sowing, a light roller will 

 gather them up, if moist, and the implement must be scraped at the 

 end of every run. When the casts are dry the roller will crush them 

 and remain clean. This light rolling may be repeated once or twice, 

 if necessary, always taking care not to break the surface either with 

 the foot or the roller. 



Those who wish to rid the soil of worms, either before sowing or 

 after the grass is established, may do so by means of water strongly 

 impregnated with newly burned stone lime. Fill a barrel with water, 

 add as much lime as the water will absorb ; stir briskly, and then allow 

 the lime to settle. Generally a peck of fresh lime will be sufficient 

 for about forty gallons of water. The clear fluid freely used from 

 an ordinary water-can will bring the worms from their burrows in 

 hundreds, and at the same time benefit the grass. The worms 

 should be collected and destroyed in salt water. 



Watering the Seed-bed. When severe and prolonged 

 drought succeeds the sowing, there is a possibility that the seeds 

 may be '* malted.' In spring the soil is generally moist enough to 

 start seed-germs, but, as already explained, continued dry weather 

 arrests growth, and the fragile seedlings wither away. As a rule the 



387 c c 2 



