34 Landscape Gardening 



per acre of any of the standard lawn fertilizers should be 

 thoroughly worked in upon the surface. While commercial 

 fertilizers alone often give good results, the effect of a heavy 

 coating of stable manure is such as to make the land less 

 subject to drouth. Fertilizers containing substances like 

 nitrate of soda, muriate of potash, etc., should be used with 

 caution, as they often injure the young grass plants. More 

 failures in lawn-making come from a scanty supply of 

 plant-food in the soil than from any other reason, and the 

 poorer the soil the more liberal must be the supply of 

 plant-food used. 



FIG. 13. Improper Grading about Dwelling. 



MAKING THE SURFACE 



After the fertilizing-materials have been applied the 

 land should be thoroughly worked and smoothed until a 

 perfect seed-bed is obtained. 



In grading away from buildings a perfect level should be 

 avoided. Fig. 13 illustrates a very unnatural and unsatis- 

 factory grade, for the reason that the surface-water will not 

 readily pass away, while the rounded surface that might be 

 as well produced is much more natural and beautiful. If 

 graded to a curved line running from the base of the build- 



