AUGUST: SECOND WEEK 205 



important item in maintaining a good lawn. A modern 

 type of water-ballast roller, which can be made any desired 

 weight, is preferable. 



Renewing an Old Lawn 



When a lawn is run down the question is always whether 

 it will be better and cheaper to renew it or to remake it. 

 If the trouble is neglect, surface remedies may be sufficient; 

 if it has petered out in spite of fairly good care, the trouble 

 probably lies in the substructure, and only remaking it will 

 put it into good shape. Doctoring up a lawn made on a 

 poorly built foundation is merely throwing away money 

 and work. 



When the lawn is bare in patches, although the rest of it 

 seems to be in fairly good condition, fork up the bad spots, 

 incorporating fine, well-rotted manure, or compost, and 

 sow thickly with a mixture suitable to your climate and 

 conditions. The back of the spade can be used instead of 

 the roller for firming down remade spots. At the same 

 time, go over the remainder of the lawn, after cutting it 

 quite close, with a steel rake and give it a vigorous combing, 

 loosening up the soil about the roots. Give this a generous 

 top-dressing with compost to which seed has been added. 

 Then give a thorough watering. 



When the lawn remains ragged looking in spite of care, 

 with apparently a good condition of soil, the trouble is 

 usually caused by weeds or undesirable grasses. In some 

 lawns, particularly in the Northern States, there is too much 

 clover, sometimes the result of improperly mixed seed, some- 

 times from volunteer plants. 



Uneven or rough lawns can usually be leveled up by filling 

 the hollows with good soil. If this is put on just after the 

 grass has been cut, and is not made too deep, the original 

 grass will come up through it; otherwise reseeding will be 

 necessary. Care should be taken to put this soil on in layers 

 of not more than two or three inches, and beat each succes- 

 sive layer down firmly with the spade. 



It sometimes happens, particularly in rather heavy soils, 



