LAWNS AND LAWN GRASSES 
69 
2 to 3 inches deep, spaced 9 to 12 inches apart, should 
be made. The roots should be laid in these trenches, end 
to end, and covered with soil. The reason for planting in 
such parallel trenches is to make cultivation and weeding 
easier later. 
If tufts of Bermuda turf are used they should be 
planted in straight rows; the plants about 9 inches apart 
and the rows 12 inches apart. 
The lawn should be watered heavily after the grass 
has been set. 
A common belief is that once Bermuda Grass is set 
out it requires no further care. This is certainly errone¬ 
ous. Constant care is required for the first two months 
after the Bermuda Grass is planted to assist it in its fight 
with crab grass and other native grasses. Crab grass and 
native grasses will certainly kill out the Bermuda Grass 
when the Bermuda Grass is getting established unless they 
are kept hoed out. 
Bermuda Grass will not successfully compete with the 
native grasses without help until it has entirely covered 
the ground. 
Most of the failures with Bermuda Grass are due to 
lack of proper care for the first few months after the grass 
is planted. It should be watered frequently and should 
be continually cultivated if native grasses appear. 
After the Bermuda Grass has become thoroughly es¬ 
tablished and the ground entirely covered nothing can 
compete with it. A well-kept Bermuda lawn is a beautiful 
velvety carpet of green during the hottest weather. It 
requires some water to keep it green, but it has the ad¬ 
vantage of enduring while the owner is on a vacation or 
elsewhere. Under such neglect it may turn brown and 
be apparently dead, but a copious watering will promptly 
bring it back to its former perfection. 
The principal objection to Bermuda Grass is its char- 
