FLOWER-GARDENS AND PLEASURE-GROUNDS. 



279 



For two or three summers after a lawn is 

 made, all weeds should be regularly spudded 

 out, or killed by dropping poison into the 

 hearts of the plants, or they will quickly in- 

 crease, entailing endless work in after-years. 

 Coarse grasses and daisies should in like man- 

 ner be extirpated. Daisies, although at first 

 only existing in small quantities, if not goi 

 out by the roots will increase rapidly where a 

 mowing-machine is used, as their flower-heads 

 are often thrown over the collecting box; and 

 although the seeds may not be matured, still 

 some of them will vegetate and grow into flower- 

 ing plants. Lawns which are sown should not 

 be very often or very closely mowed the first 

 year, and the scythe is a better implement than 

 the machine to use during that period. Previous 

 to the first mowing in the spring the lawn should 

 receive one good rolling with a heavy iron roller, 

 to solidify the ground, which the winter's frosts 

 will have loosened. 



Sometimes before laying the turf the surface 

 is covered with sifted coal-ashes, in order to 

 keep the lawn free from worm-casts. The latter 

 are troublesome, it must be admitted, but raking 

 and sweeping will disperse them. We do not, 

 however, approve of too much sweeping up of 

 worm-casts, unless where excessively numerous, 

 or for some special occasion ; they are the means 

 by which nature manures the grass, as well 

 as drains the surface. Being composed of fine 

 soil the greater part of the worm-casts is washed 

 in among the roots of the grasses, forming a top- 

 dressing which is peculiarly beneficial to the finer 

 species — in fact, it is that kind of top-dressing 

 in which they exist for ages in perpetual verdure 

 in the wild state on our downs and commons. 

 On the whole we should not be inclined to use 

 any precautions against the worms at first; but 

 if the soil is naturally so light and porous that 

 their assistance is not required, they may be 

 brought to the surface at any time by an 

 application of clear lime-water, when they can 

 be swept up. 



The elastic surface of a mossy lawn is pre- 

 ferred by some to the less yielding grass. The 

 worst feature connected with such a lawn is that 

 in dry weather it is certain to become brown, 

 unless the ground is wetter than it ought to be. 

 To remove moss, manure of different kinds is 

 used, such as loam and rotten dung, soot and 

 loam or guano, but all these are so far objection- 

 able that they cause the grass to grow rank and 

 strong. To obviate this, apply a dressing of 

 lime in a powdered state mixed with maiden 

 loam in proportions of one part lime to three 



parts of loam, or wood-ashes may take the place 

 of the lime. Care should be taken that the loam 

 is new and free from weeds, or the cure will be 

 worse than the evil sought to be remedied. A 

 dressing of from \ to \ inch will be sufficient, 

 and it may be applied at any time during the 

 growing season when the weather is showery, 

 so as to get it covered in without delay. April 

 or October are the best months for applying the 

 mixture; and before it is spread on the lawn, 

 much of the moss should be raked up. A 

 similar dressing may with advantage be afforded 

 to old lawns, or those that have become ex- 

 hausted, especially if grass seeds are first sown, 

 and the compost applied afterwards, the dress- 

 ing being repeated from time to time as may be 

 found necessary. 



Bowling -Greens and Lawn-Tennis bounds. — 

 Space for a bowling-green or lawn-tennis ground 

 may be provided in any part of the pleasure- 

 ground where they would not interfere with the 

 general arrangements, or with the pictorial or 

 landscape effects. So far as using the ground 

 for the purpose of bowling goes, any level 

 portion of lawn might be taken, but if used 

 much the grass is apt in very dry weather 

 to get bare in places and become unsightly. 

 Hence it is better that spaces of sufficient 

 size should be selected in some part of the 

 grounds, and skirted by a walk passing by 

 and amongst groups of shrubs planted in order 

 to screen them in part, and in the case of 

 a bowling-green, the surface being sunk about 

 6 inches, so as to retain the bowls. It is usual 

 to have near these play places a covered seat or 

 a summer-house, and, in years gone by, when 

 the game of bowls was more practised than 

 at present, the green was often surrounded 

 with a high hedge of Hornbeam, Beech, or 

 Holly, which, being kept nicely clipped, shut 

 out the wind effectually. 



A bowling-green then is usually made in what 

 is known as a sunk panel. To form this the top 

 soil is removed, and about half a foot of the sub- 

 soil excavated. The surface soil is then replaced 

 at the lower level, the plot being of course well 

 drained. Where thus formed, even if the ground 

 is naturally dry enough, it becomes necessary to 

 have on each side drains, with gratings of small 

 size at the surface to carry away the surface 

 water, which will, during heavy rains, collect 

 upon it. When thus formed in a sunken panel, 

 the surface may be flooded in the winter, for 

 the purpose of being converted for the time into 

 a skating-rink, but in this case the drains above 

 referred to must be temporarily closed. 



