FLORICULTURE 
experience has shown that a better lawn 
will always be obtained. A good lawn 
mixture is a combination of Kentucky 
Blue Grass, Fancy Red Top and Creep- 
ing Bent in equal parts with, if desired, 
a proportion of ten per cent (10%) White 
Clover. 
In sections where the winter is not 
severe, the seeding may be done in the 
spring or early fall, while in some of the 
mountainous sections, early summer will 
be more satisfactory for the starting of 
the young grasses. Where summer seed- 
ing is done, proper care must be given 
to the watering and it has been found of 
great advantage to cover over the ground 
with a light mulch of well rotted manure. 
This prevents the hot sun from burning 
the young rootlets of the small grass 
plants and also helps to hold moisture 
after watering. The proper care of lawns 
after they are established consists of 
cutting the grass at the right time, suffi- 
cient watering and the keeping free of 
obnoxious weeds. The latter can be done 
only by persistent work from the start 
in taking them out by the roots. Occasional 
rolling is beneficial in that it keeps the 
soil of an even nature. Mowing should 
not be done as often as sometimes seen; 
in fact, most people are apt to cut the 
grass too closely, thus preventing the 
lawn having that velvety texture so much 
desired. Good judgment is also required 
in watering and it is much better to give 
a good watering and then let the lawn 
remain until such time as it may actually 
need watering rather than to sprinkle 
too often. 
In the autumn the grass should not be 
cut too short for during the winter 
months, at mild intervals, weeds will 
start in and get ahead of the grass which 
has been weakened by its continuous crop- 
ping and therefore cannot cope with its 
more sturdy neighbor, the weed. 
Many different fertilizers are used; per- 
haps one of the most satisfactory is fine 
ground bone applied in liberal quantities 
at various seasons of the year. Sheep 
manure is also one of the best natural 
fertilizers that may be applied towards 
the end of winter. 
963 
Ornamental Trees 
For the decoration of grounds, both 
public and private, there are many variet- 
ies of ornamental trees both deciduous 
and evergreen that may be used and 
where the grounds are of sufficient size to 
warrant the grouping of different species 
to give the most picturesque effect much 
studying is required. 
In the planting of parks or parking, 
the main thought should always be the 
appearance of the picture when completed 
and the size and shape of the tree, the 
foliage effects both summer and fall and 
harmony with its neighbor, all require 
forethought. 
In general street planting, much more 
care is necessary than is generally seen 
in the preparing of the parkings for the 
trees. When new streets are being laid 
out, little or no attention is paid to the 
planting space. The street parking 
should have sufficient quantity of good 
loam for the development of whatever 
variety of tree is planted. Well shaped 
nursery grown trees should be selected 
and planted at a distance of from 30 to 
60 feet apart, according to the variety. It 
is often the custom to cut off the entire 
top of the tree when planting. This is 
the greatest mistake ever made by the 
planter. A tree should be pruned when 
planted, but the proper pruning is only a 
thinning out or shaping back of side 
branches, leaving a straight leader in the 
center of the tree. When the tree is 
being dug for planting, it is absolutely 
necessary to save all of the fibrous roots 
possible and any of the large roots which 
may have been mutilated should be 
pruned back, so that a new growth will 
start. The most important of all when 
digging trees out is an immediate cover- 
ing of the roots from the weather, to 
prevent drying up. More trees die from 
lack of this precaution than from any 
other cause. The drying winds and hot 
suns, so prevalent in many sections of the 
country, soon take the vitality out of the 
fibrous roots and the tree is unable to 
cope with the transplanting. 
In planting a street tree, see that a 
large enough hole is dug to give the tree 
