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APPENDIX. 
and sow from three to four bushels of seed to the acre. If this is done early 
in the spring, he will have a lawn-like surface by mid-summer, and a fine 
close turf the next season. 
After this, the whole beauty of a lawn depends on frequent mowing. 
Once a fortnight at the furthest, is the rule for all portions of the lawn 
in the neighborhood of the house, or near the principal walks. A longer 
growth than this, will only leave yellow and coarser stubble after mow- 
ing, instead of a soft velvet surface. A broad-bladed English scythe, (to 
be had at the shops of the seedsmen,) set nearly parallel to the surface, 
is the instrument for the purpose, and with it a clever mower will be able 
to shave within half an inch of the ground, without leaving any marks. 
To free the surface from worm casts, etc., it is a common practice to roll 
the previous evening as much as may be mown the next day. 
As the neatness of a well kept lawn depends mainly upon the manner 
in which it is mown, and as this again can only be well done where 
there are no inequalities in the ground, it follows that the surface should 
be kept as smooth as possible. Before sowing a lawn, too much pains 
cannot be taken to render its surface smooth and even. After this, in the 
spring, before the grass starts, it should be examined and all little holes 
and irregularities filled up, and the same should be looked over at any 
annual top-dressing that may take place. The occasional use of a heavy 
roller, after rain, will also greatly tend to remedy all defects of this 
nature. 
Where a piece of land is long kept in lawn it must have an occasional 
top-dressing — every two or three years, if the soil is rich, or every 
season, if it is poor. As early as possible in the spring is the best 
time to apply such a top-dressing, which may be a compost of any 
decayed vegetable or animal matter — heavier and more abounding with 
marsh mud, etc., just in proportion to the natural lightness of the soil. 
Indeed almost every season the lawn should be looked over, all weeds 
taken out, and any poor or impoverished spots plentifully top-dressed, 
and, if necessary, sprinkled with a little fresh seed. Wood ashes, either 
fresh or leached, is also one of the most efficient fertilizers of a lawn. 
We can already, especially in the finer places on the Hudson, and 
about Boston, boast of many finely kept lawns, and we hope every day, 
as the better class of country residences increases, to see this indis- 
pensable feature in tasteful grounds becoming better understood and 
more universal. 
