208 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



May, 19 lo 



full of weeds to make a good lawn. Seeding will always 

 give better results. 



There is a way of sodding with small pieces of turf, two 

 inches square, planted eight to ten inches apart, called the 

 inoculation method. The grass spreads under ground from 

 the small squares until the whole area is covered. This 

 takes some time and much care and labor in weeding, but it 

 produces a lawn of absolutely pure turf. 



Crab grass is a great pest, as it grows in warm weather, 

 appearing in the lawn in August. The only thing that can 

 be done with it is to rake it out, enrich the spots and sow 

 more seed in the hope of encouraging the good grass to 

 crowd it out. 



On a large place there should be a reserve lawn from 

 which sods can be cut out through the summer to repair 



worn places in the lawn or tennis court. This reserve plot 

 should be re-seeded every year or as may be necessary with 

 the same kind of seed that was used on the lawn. 



Old lawns are often full of moneywort, cinque foils, moss 

 and other things and it is often a question whether to dig 

 the whole place up and re-seed it or to let it alone. Such 

 things are not bad in themselves and are well enough in a 

 little used part of the place. Raking and heavy fertilizing 

 will often do wonders in such a spot. 



Dandelions, plantains, docks and mulleins are easy to dig 

 up, but must be cut off well below the ground. 



Any lawn which is used for games should be free from 

 all weeds and should be constantly rolled and mowed. 



All lawns should be well rolled every spring as soon as 

 the frost is out of the ground. 



Planning the Small Garden 



By Loring Underwood 



HE enthusiasm for simple, dignified and side, with the grounds in full view of passers-by, and each 

 natural things, that country life gives so laid out enough like the other to suggest nothing of that 



bountifully, has become contagious and 

 many owners of suburban homes appre- 

 ciate the enjoyment to be derived from 

 grounds that are laid out with the idea 

 of comfort and seclusion, rather than 



with the notion that the grounds about the house should 



This plea has long 



been urged by pro- 

 fessional lovers of 



art, but until re- 

 cently it has had to 



contend with the 



prevailing fashion 



of obtrusive and 



mono tonous dis- 

 play of undignified 



lawns, walks and 



flower beds. 



The time was 



when the dweller in 



a suburban town 



would as soon think 



of wearing his coat 



wrong side fore- 

 most as of living in 



a house that was 



situated on its lot 



other than with the 



front to the street. 



It mattered little 



whether the house 



faced the south, 



north, east or west, 



o r whether the 



street was noisy, 



dusty or hideous to 



look at, the best 



rooms must face 



the street where all 



who pass might see 



the most attractive 



side of the house 



The plan of the house plot showing the position of the house and its relation to the garden 



individuality which home life calls for, we can come to but 

 ont conclusion: that the householders care little for the 

 quiet and domestic life that would be so much more a fact 

 if only the grounds were treated in an intimate and home- 

 like manner — at least that part of the grounds which is 

 devoted to the garden or lawn. It matters not whether the 



suburban lot is large 

 or small, owned by 

 the rich man or the 

 artisan, if it is to be 

 adapted to a life of 

 repose or the devel- 

 opment of a per- 

 sonal interest in na- 

 ture and her prod- 

 ucts, it must have a 

 good measure of 

 privacy and protec- 

 tion. 



To-day we see 

 many ways of ac- 

 quiring comfort and 

 refinement outside 

 of the four walls of 

 our houses, and the 

 home life embraces 

 more than living 

 within the four 

 walls. The accom- 

 panying plan and il- 

 lustrations suggest 

 but some of the 

 many ways that this 

 mignt be done. 



It will be noticed 

 in the plan that the 

 house is not placed 

 near the middle of 

 the lot, as is usually 

 the case on small 

 suburban places, but 

 it occupies the cor- 



Lot Line 



at a glance, and be seen in turn by those within. When we ner of the lot, leaving sufficient land to allow a uniform and 

 recall the countless number of such small suburban places, expansive treatment of grounds. The prevailing custom of 

 of less than an acre in extent, that are arranged side by placing the house on or near the center of a lot is as poor as 



