GENERAL PRINCIPLES. 25 



late snows the seeds are carried down with the melt- 

 ing of the snows, and are lodged in the small crevices 

 in the soil, or are brought so closely in contact with 

 the soil that when moist weather follows they germinate 

 successfully. Such germination is all the more success- 

 ful when the seeds are sown on ground on which a nurse 

 crop is growing, since the shade it furnishes at the sea- 

 son of germination is helpful to the growth of the young 

 grass plants. 



When grass seeds are sown quite early in the spring, 

 they usually require less covering than when sown later. 

 The roots find moisture near the surface more readily 

 at that season, and the young plants are less liable to 

 be injured by the drought of summer. The later they 

 are sown, therefore, in the spring, the more deeply rela- 

 tively should the covering be. Unless when sown quite 

 early in the spring the aim should be to use a harrow 

 in covering the seed, and the necessity for careful har- 

 rowing increases with the advance of the season. When 

 grass seeds are sown in the autumn an intermediate cov- 

 ering is usually preferable, as, if covered shallow the 

 seed may not find sufficient moisture, and if covered 

 deeply the growth may prove insufficient to fortify the 

 plants to meet, in the best manner, the adverse condi- 

 tions of winter weather. But there may be good rea- 

 sons in some instances for covering grass seeds slightly 

 or deeply when sown in the fall. 



The inherent vigor of the plants has much to do with 

 the depth to which the seed ought to be buried in order 

 to secure the most successful germination. Some grass 

 seeds have much power to grow without any covering at 



