ON LAWN BEAUTIFICATION 



This does not mean, however, that it is out of 

 its proper place in the economy of Nature. Nature 

 has a use for weeds and in fact they have done 

 much good for man. 



When crops were first cultivated, farmers 

 stirred the soil in order to destroy the weeds. 

 They did not then fully realize that stirring the 

 soil aided the growth of the crops. They did dis- 

 cover, however, that when the weeds were de- 

 stroyed much better crops were produced, and 

 thus the weeds forced farmers to stir the soil and 

 allow the air, so necessary to the plants, to circu- 

 late among the roots. 



Now that the farmers have learned the real 

 reason for cultivation at the proper times, whether 

 there are weeds present or not, the destruction of 

 weeds assumes a different aspect. 



Weeds are a detriment in many cases from the 

 fact that when proper precautions are not used 

 they take possession of areas of land so that it is 

 impossible to grow useful crops. 



There are two general classes of weeds, annuals 

 and perennials. 



Annual weeds reproduce themselves by seeds 

 which mature each season, usually in great abun- 

 dance. Perennials, in cold climates, although most 

 of them produce seeds, also perpetuate themselves 

 by storing food and living matter under the ground 



[257] 



