46 
BOTZUM BROS SEED CO. 
for sale a liquid known as "weed eliminator" when applied to crown of weed 
is very effective, ordinary motor gasoline may be applied to crown of weeds 
at the rate of one tablespoonful to each plant- This can be applied with 
a "gun" made for this purpose or by use of an oil can- The gun is quicker, 
easier and not expensive* 
15 to 25 lbs- of fertilizer should be applied per 1000 sq- feet some¬ 
time in March. The preferred analysis for lawn fertilizer is 4-12-4. The 
application of fertilizer can take place before the work on weed eradica¬ 
tion has started. 
A second application of fertilizer should be made in June at the rate 
of 5 to 6 lbs* per 1000 feet. Use the same analysis fertilizer as used in 
the early spring application. A third application made in August with the 
same quantity completes the fertilizing schedule except that if one desires 
he may make an application of Bone Meal in the fall. The reason for apply¬ 
ing Bone Meal in the fall is that it is slow in liberating the plant food 
elements* Fall application provides a long winter period for the el.ements 
to become available for the growing plants the following spring. 
When the weeds are sufficiently under control reseed with a mixture 
of Blue Grass, Red Top, Timothy and White Clover- The bulk of which is 
Blue Grass- The Timothy is put in the mixture because it has a quick 
growth and covers the bare spots. Red Top is a little slower in develop - 
ing and fills in with and after the Timothy. The Blue Grass should grad - 
ually crown out everything except White Clover* White Clover is consider¬ 
ed good for lawns because of its ability to gather Nitrogen from the air 
by the aid of bacteria which develop on the roots of the clover thereby in¬ 
creasing the fertility of the soil. 
Seeding can be done anytime except late in the fall* If it is dry it 
is necessary to water the new seeding. When seed is applied to old lawns 
it is essential that the surface be raked vigorously loosening up the soil 
at least £ inch deep. Do not be afraid of damaging the old lawn. It will 
do it good to be loosened up so that air, moisture and fertility can get 
into the roots. Grass thrives best in soils rich in organic matter- In ad¬ 
dition to lawn fertilizer the use of Vegetable matter is beneficial. Rotted 
manure applied in the spring, compost or a light layer of rich top soil 
applied at seeding time are all helpful in increasing water holding capac¬ 
ity as well as adding to fertility. 
BLUE GRASS AND LIME 
Blue Grass makes the ideal lawn turf and all that has been said in 
this article has been stated with the idea of establishing it as the perma¬ 
nent lawn grass and after once established keeping the fact in mind that it 
must be fed liberally every season- If Blue Grass is neglected it will not 
continue to thrive because it does not grow readily in North Eastern Ohio 
due to lack of fertility and lime deficiency in the soil. Blue Grass origin¬ 
ally comes from Kentucky where the soil is fertile, sweet and well drained 
due to underlying Limestone formations. 
It would be natural to assume that a good heavy application of Lime to¬ 
gether with Commercial Fertilizer would put the soil in condition so that 
Blue Grass would grow readily. In sweetening the soil we make conditions 
much more favorable for the weeds and quite often the weeds get the better 
of the situation. Authorities on lawns believe that the better way is to 
let the soil be slightly acid and pay attention to fertility, drainage and 
organic matter because it has been found that Blue Grass will make a good 
turf on acid soil. Sulphate of Ammonia adds nitrogen and tends to keep 
soil acid for this reason it is a favored source of nitrogen for lawn fer¬ 
tilizer as well as weed control. However in this section of the state a 
light application of lime in most cases would do more good than harm. An 
application of 15 lbs- Hydrated lime to 1000 sq. feet would still leave 
most soils in thie vicinity slightly acid. 
