August, 1908 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



Much dependence is placed on the illustra- 

 tions, which are wholly from photographs, 

 and have, in each case, been taken directly 

 from nature. These pictures bring together 

 on one page the chief aspect of each tree, 

 and include a general view with larger photo- 

 graphs of leaves, flowers, fruits and winter 

 twigs. The apparatus for the identification 

 of the tree is thus very complete. In the text 

 special attention has been given to the dis- 

 tinguishing characteristics of the various spe- 

 cies, as well as to the more interesting phases 

 of the yearly cycle and the special values of 

 each tree for ornamental planting. While 

 manifestly intended for popular use, the 

 author has something to say and something 

 to show. His book is admirable in both re- 

 spects and merits warm commendation. 



Mr. Hough's book has already been noticed 

 in these pages, but it may be noted that its 

 publication has since been taken over by the 

 house of Harper & Brothers. Like each of 

 the preceding books it, too, has its own scheme, 

 which is worked out with great elaboration of 

 detail. Its photographic illustrations are most 

 abundant, and include, as distinctive features, 

 photographs of tree trunks, sections of the 

 wood, and miniature maps showing the native 

 distribution of each tree. The detail photo- 

 graphs of branches with leaves, flowers, and 

 fruits and of the undeveloped twig are very 

 full and complete. 



Window Gardening. By Herman B. Dor- 

 ner. Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill 

 Co. Pp. 153. 

 While window gardening may not, per- 

 haps, be considered an important part of the 

 garden amateur's work, it is, nevertheless, a 

 highly interesting subject, and one that gives 

 much pleasure. Mr. Dorner's little book will 

 appeal to many plant lovers, since it treats of 

 one of the most difficult phases of small gar- 

 dening, the care and growth of house plants. 

 There are few plant lovers who have not met 

 with innumerable difficulties in these matters, 

 and a brief text book that aims to help them is 

 sure to have the hearty welcome it deserves. 



Engineer's Handbook of Concrete Re- 

 inforcement. New York: American 

 Steel & Wire Co. Pp. 125. Price, $2.00. 

 This handbook consists partly of original 

 matter and partly of well selected extracts 

 from standard works on concrete construction. 

 It briefly summarizes the whole subject. The 

 contents include a number of technical tables, 

 diagrams and photographs of work in con- 

 struction. 



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To protect yourself against prevalent substitution, 

 and to make sure that the fixtures installed in your 

 home are genuine "Standard" Ware, insist that each 

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 for every dollar you invest, and is a pro- 

 tection you cannot afford to be without. 



We want every householder to have our beautifully illustrated 100-page 

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THE CARE OF THE LAWN 



By Ida D. Bennett 



THE possession of a lawn supposes a cer- 

 tain sort of social and financial standing, 

 at least a moral standard which makes a 

 sightly and orderly environment essential to 

 one's self-respect. Probably there is no one 

 thing which so presupposes refinement and 

 favorably impresses the observer as the tasteful 

 arrangement of the home grounds, especially 

 where these include a well cared for lawn and 

 an artistic planting of shrubbery. Some- 

 way the mere possession of a fine and even 

 imposing house and outbuildings makes little 

 impression, one passes them by with a glance, 

 but the modest little house set down on a 

 well groomed lawn, all its borders trim and 

 beautiful, excites our warmest comments and 

 admiration. And the possession of tasteful 

 home grounds is so entirely within the 

 means of everyone that their absence is a mark 

 of indifference to the refinements of life that 

 stamps the occupant as ignorant and clownish. 

 The successful grading of a lawn of any 

 considerable size is often beyond the means 

 of the small farmer, especially where it en- 



tails much filling in, drainage and the like, 

 but the most unfavorable site may be beau- 

 tified and made attractive by constant and 

 intelligent care. 



The work on the lawn begins very early 

 in the spring — as soon as the frost is out of 

 the ground and while yet the soil is soft and 

 wet. At this time the lawn roler — or where 

 this is lacking a field roller may be used — 

 should be run over the ground until all 

 humps, especially those caused by wheel 

 tracks, moles and the like are leveled even 

 with the remainder of the soil. Where hol- 

 lows exist they should at this time be filled 

 with good soil and grass seed sown freely over 

 the new earth, or the sod may be loosened 

 and lifted, if of good texture, and sufficient 

 earth to restore the level placed under it. So, 

 too, where there are hummocks too solid to 

 be reduced by the roller, these should have 

 the sod turned back and sufficient earth re- 

 moved to level them. But the grass may be 

 poor and thin, in which case a top dressing 

 of old, well rotted manure should have been 

 applied evenly over the entire surface late in 

 the preceding fall and in February this should 

 have been added to by a liberal application of 

 wood ashes, all of which should be removed 



with the rake before the roller is run over it 

 in the spring. 



In raking the lawn the common iron gar- 

 den rake should never be used, as this tears 

 the roots of the grass and is especially destruc- 

 tive to the white clover which is so important 

 a feature of the summer lawn and one of the 

 most valuable renovators of old and worn 

 sods. The regular lawn rake, which has its 

 teeth bent so as to pass over the soil without 

 entering it, is the proper implement to use. 

 It will require two or more rakings to put the 

 lawn in a clean condition. The first will 

 merely remove the dead leaves and accumu- 

 lated litter of the winter, and after the litter 

 has been removed from the flower beds and 

 the like it will be necessary to again go over 

 the lawns and all garden paths to put it in 

 condition for the lawn mower and the 

 summer. 



A supply of lawn seed should be kept on 

 hand and all thin spots sown before a heavy 

 rain at intervals during summer and it will 

 often be found profitable to sprinkle a little 

 bone meal over the soil at the same time. 



The lawn mower should be put in action 

 as soon as the grass is large enough to cut. 

 Letting the grass get high early in the season 



