CHAPTER VI. 



LAWNS. —^V^EEDS AND MOSS. 



1. How to make la-wns. — A lawii which is to be perma- 

 nent should be thoroughly and carefully made. See that 

 the land is well drained. Plow it or trench it deeply. 

 Rake the surface fine and smooth, removing lumps and 

 stones. Use freely of chemical fertilizer — rich in nitrogen 

 — or clean stable manure. Sow the seed very early in 

 the spring, so that the grass becomes established before 

 dry weather ; or else sow just before the fall rains are 

 expected. If the land is in readiness, the seed may be 

 sown on a late spring snow. The best lawn grass is June 

 grass (known also as Kentucky blue grass) . Sow 3 or 4 

 bushels to the acre in order to secure a close, soft turf. 

 Two or three quarts of timothy seed may be used when 

 seeding, as this grass makes a better cover the first year, 

 and it is gradually crowded out by the June grass. If one 

 likes white clover in a lawn, it may be added at the rate 

 of a couple quarts to the acre. Weeds will come up the 

 first year ; keep them closely mown, and the June grass 

 will crowd them out in a year or two. Reseed and repair 

 all poor spots in the lawn from year to year, as recom- 

 mended in Section 3. Give a top dressing every spring. 

 Well-made lawns, which are well cared for, rarely need 

 watering. 



2. Weeds in general. — Weeds rarely trouble the good culti- 

 vator, particularly in vegetable gardening. Intensive meth- 

 ods of cultivation allow no weeds to appear. It is economy, 

 both in labor and returns from the crop, to prevent weeds 

 from appearing, rather than to hoe or pull them out after 



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