54 YAED AND GARDEN 



for various reasons. Chief among these is 

 the fact that Kentucky blue-grass does not ger- 

 minate quickly; if it is planted in the fall, for 

 instance, there will be no results until the next 

 spring, and if sown in the spring it will be some 

 time before it makes even a light covering for 

 the soil. 



Various formulae are offered by dealers in 

 seeds, and where the dealer is known to be re- 

 liable and is willing to furnish the purchaser 

 with an analysis of his mixture, it is safe to pur- 

 chase it and probably the best thing, all circum- 

 stances considered, to do. But be sure in any 

 event that the Kentucky blue-grass which 

 should form the bulk, of the mixture is "re- 

 cleaned fancy," and do not accept any seed that 

 weighs less than twenty pounds to the bushel. 

 The object of the mixture is to insure im- 

 mediate results from the sowing while the blue- 

 grass is germinating, but incidentally the extra 

 grasses mixed with the blue-grass serve addi- 

 tional purposes. In the first place mixtures 

 result in a denser turf because grasses thrive 

 better when grown in variety. Then, too, the 

 Kentucky blue-grass has some undesirable fea- 

 tures and it is these that the other seeds in the 

 mixture will correct. The Kentucky blue, for 



