G R A S S. 



leven and fmooth furface ; in this ftate it may either be fown 

 with grafs feed, or laid down with turf. 



For the firft method tlie proper feafons for fowing arc 

 either February, March, and April, or in Augull or Sep- 

 tember in moid weather. In moill wet foils the former is 

 probably the beft, but in thofe of a dry gravelly nature, the 

 latter. In this bufmefs it is of the utmoft confequence to 

 procure good feeds ; thofe from hay-ftacks or out of hay- 

 lofts are often ufed, which may anfwer well, where the hav 

 was the growth of fome fine palUire free from weeds, and 

 naturally afforded fine turf when grazed and mowed ; but 

 in other cafes there is often a mixture of Tarious forts with 

 weeds, by v.hich the fward is rendered irregular and foul, 

 and never makes handfome fhort grafs-grounds. If you are 

 not furniihed with feeds of your own, they mufl be obtained 

 from the feedlraan, and fliould be of thofe kinds which 

 ftrike deep root, fpread out laterally in their tops, are per- 

 manent, and capable of reiiiling the effefts of heat; there are 

 many of this kind. {Scq Laying I^ahv doivn to Grafs.) The 

 feed muil be fown broad-cait, very thick and regular over 

 the furface, and direftly raked or lian'owed in % and when 

 the furface is dry it fhould be rolled with a wooden roller, 

 to bury the feeds more effeclually, and make a fmooth fur- 

 face : when the grafs comes up, all weeds fliould be re- 

 moved ; and the fame feafon, when the fward is become 

 thick and green, and advanced fome inches in growth^ it 

 fliould be mowed, rolling it well afterwards, and continue 

 mowing it and rolling two or three times the firft fummer, 

 efpecially if it Avere fown iu fpring, as, the oftener it is 

 mowed and felled, the thicker and finer it will grow ; and if 

 it be intended to keep the grafs tolerably fine, mowing will 

 be requiUte once a week or fortnight, according to the 

 growth from April to October, and rolling once a week or 

 fortnight in moderately dry weather, and occafioually in the 

 winter feafon. In this way a good turf may be formed in a 

 few years. 



In the fecond method, which fliould always be employed 

 tthere it can with convenience, the beft turf is that of a fine 

 pallured common or down, where the fward is fine and fliort, 

 with confiderable clofcnefs. 



The beft feafon for laying the turf is from September till 

 March or April, though it will grow at almoft any time 

 of the year, even, if there be occafion, in the fummer 

 months. 



The turf for this ufe is moftly cut or flayed with an iron 

 inftrument called a turfing iron ; all the turfs being cut of 

 an equal width, length, and thickncfs ; the proper fi/.e is a 

 foot wide, a yard long, and about an inch in thicknefs. 

 They Ihould be firft mai'ked by a line the proper width, 

 length, and depth, and then cut with a racer or cutter, firft 

 longways a foot wide, then acrofs in yard lengths, proceeding 

 afterwards to cut them up ; having particular regard to cut 

 them level, and all of an equal thicknefs, othervvife it will 

 be impoffible to lay them level. As they are cut they 

 fliould be rolled each up clofe and tight, the grafs fide in- 

 wards, and piled up by tens, efpecially if they are cut by 

 the hundred, wlfich is moilly the cafe. This is ufually done 

 at from about a (billing to fifteen pence the hundred, ac- 

 cording to the nature of the foil, as, whether ioft and eafy 

 to cut, or hard and ftony. A man will cut from three to 

 five, fix, or feven hundred a day, with a perfon to trace 

 them out and roll them up as they are cut from the iur- 

 face. 



The method of laying them is very eafy : they are placed 

 regularly turf and turf, unrolling them as they are laid, 

 joining them up quite clofe edge to edge, and making good 

 all dcliciencics of broken parts as the work proceed*. ; and 



as foon as laid, they (liould be well b^^atcn with broad L^vy 

 wooden beaters, as flat pieces of elm or oak pl.uik t*«H 

 inches thick, fiitcen or eiglitecn inches long, and a foot 

 broad, having long handles fixed flanting in liic middles «i ■ 

 the u])per iide.s. With thele beat the grafs regularly all 

 over, and then roll it well with a heavv iron or ftone roller, 

 repeating thefe operations in moilt weather as there may be 

 occafion. 



When very dry hot weather fuccceds, fo as to occafioi 

 the turf toflirink and open at the joints, a good watering iv 

 of much advantage to it. 



The management of fliort grafs-ground, after ?t has been 

 thus laid down, is that of mowing it in fummer frequently, 

 to keep it fliort and line, like a palhired down ; pohng oc- 

 cafioually with a long pole, to fcatter the worui-tall.s, which 

 greatly deface all fliort gr.ifs, and rolling it frequenllv both 

 to take lip the featlered worni-calls to make the furface 

 clean, and to render it fmooth, firm, and even in its ap- 

 pearance. 



Mowing once a week, ten days, or a fortnight, or, accord- 

 ing to its general growtli, during ih.e f.umner, is neceiTar^-, 

 efpecially for the })rinci])al home lawns, and other ihort grafs- 

 grounds, ill tlie moil confpicuous pavts ; wiiieh parts ihould 

 always be kept very clofe and fine, like the luard of a fir.c 

 paftured down or common : it i-. j>erfornied u ith a Ihort grafi- 

 fcythe ; and dewy mornings, ur inoiil weatlier, mull ahvavi 

 be choi'en for the work, as it will be impollible to mow fliort 

 grafs properly in dry weatiier. Previous to mowing, it u 

 of advantage fometinies to poie and roll the grafs the dav 

 before it is intended to mow. In performing the work of 

 mowing, proper attention is neceflary not to fcore or leave 

 the marks of the ilrokes of the fcytlie, which ha? a very 

 unfightly appearance ; to prevent whicli, as muih a.i poflible, 

 the point of the fcytlie Ihould be laid out rather wide, an 

 inch or two beyond the meafure of heel and point, efpecially 

 for very fliort grafs, keeping the point rather out, and not 

 drawing that part too fail inwards, gathering tlie grafs 

 neatly to the left iu a range ; and after having mowed thus 

 to the end of the fwarth, to mow it lightly back again, in 

 order to trim ofl^all fcores, and other irregularities, unavoid> 

 ably left the firft time in executing the work. 



After it has been all thus mown over, proceed to fwccp 

 up the mowings of each fwarth regularly, bv ftanding ih 

 the middle, fweeping it along alternately to the right and 

 left, to the end of the fwarth, forming all the grafs in a 

 range on each iide ; then fweep up the ranges in large heaps, 

 and carry the whole off direi!:lly in a wheel-barrow, large 

 baflcet, or other contrivance for the purpofe. 



The bufinefs of pohng is performed by a long, taper, 

 pliable, aflien pole, fifteen or eighteen feet long, by pafling 

 it backwards and forward.^, in rather dry weather, fo as to 

 break and fcatter the worm-calls about. The grafs (houW 

 be afterwards rolled with a wooden roller, when the fur- 

 face is a little moiil, hut not too wet, by which the oartli 

 will all adhere to tlie roller, and render the furface perfectly 

 clean, the wark being repeated, as there may be occafion, 

 the year round; and in n>owing-time, it the furface is foul, 

 it is particularly neeeil'ary to pole and roll on the day prcvioui 

 to mowing, by which a clean fmooth iurface will be pro- 

 vided, fo as to be able to mow clofe, even, and moit cxpedir 

 tioufly. See Poling. 



In the rolling of fliort grafs-ground, it Ihould be per. 

 formed oceallonaily with a wooden roller, and a heavy iron 

 or Hone roller : the wooden roller is proper after polinp, 

 to clean up the worm-ca!*s and Iniooth the furface, being 

 perfonned when the furface is not wry wet, clpecially if 

 full of worm-carts, as it would otherwife plaller and daub 

 4 M '. ths 



