

EVERYONE desires a thick, velvety lawn and 
while many do not succeed in getting just this, 
it is not a difficult task if thoroughness is the 
keynote in early preparation. In planning and 
making a lawn keep in mind that it is a long 
time proposition and that a good foundation 
(including drainage, soil texture and food sup- 
ply) is essential in providing an adequate 
foundation for grass plants. Many times this 
calls for artificial drainage, thorough prepara- 
tion of the soil and ample supply of organic 
matter, grading which is artistically effective 
as well as practical from the point of view of 
upkeep and the use of a good seed mixture and 
plenty of it. 
SOIL PREPARATION 
When the soil is already good and drainage 
conditions are satisfactory, preparation need 
not be deeper than six inches. If the soil is 
heavy and inclined to stay wet, it may be nec- 
essary to lay 4-inch drain tile or cinder and 
sand base about 18 to 24 inches below the fin- 
ished surface. Heavy soils may be lightened by 
incorporating sand or some form of humus such 
as peat moss (a bale to 600 square feet worked 
into the upper 4 inches of soil). On the other 
hand, a light sandy soil is also improved and 
given more body by the addition of humus at 
the same rate. 
Natural manures are not desirable in making 
a new lawn because they are likely to contain 
many weed seeds which may continue to germi- 
nate over several years. A “balanced” commer- 
cial fertilizer, such as 4-12-4 formula (that 
means, containing 4% Nitrogen, 12% Phos- 
phates, 4% Potash) worked into the upper two 
or three inches of soil at the rate of 4 pounds 
to 100 square feet will supply available nour- 
ishment for the new grass as well as a supply 
of food later on. 
SEED MIXTURES 
The selection of seed is vitally important, as 
good preparation will be of little benefit unless 
a proper mixture is selected for your particular 
locality. It is far better economy to spend a 
few extra pennies on a high quality seed and 
have a satisfactory lawn for many years than 
to sacrifice quality for temporary savings 
offered by inferior mixtures containing “filler 
seed”. It is recommended to use a complete 
mixture as the various types of grasses blended 
in such a mixture are incorporated for specific 
purposes. A mixture containing two or more 
“base grasses” and one “nurse grass” is most 
ideal for Northwest soil and climatic condi- 
tions. We are listing below the three main 
Wstiim Lawns. 
with Diamond Quality Seed 
groups in lawn seed. Your mixture should con- 
tain grasses from group one and two. 
Group 1—Base Grasses—Those which will 
live for many years and will of themselves 
occupy the whole area on the existing type of 
soil if properly maintained. This class is almost 
invariably slow to mature. This group includes 
Kentucky Blue Grass, Chewings Fescue, Creep- 
ing Bent. 
Group 2—Nurse Grasses—Its life is short 
but it plays an important part in grass seed 
mixtures in that it grows fast and occupies the 
soil until the slower and more permanent vari- 
eties are far enough along to cover the ground. 
By its nature nurse grass seldom lives over 
three years and should not compose over 30% 
of the entire mixture. In this group we list 
Red Top. 
Group 3—Filler Grasses—Are varieties not 
adapted to lawn and turf purposes but used to 
increase bulk in a mixture or lessen the price 
per pound. These grasses should not be used if 
a top quality lawn is desired. This group in- 
cludes Rye Grasses, Crested Dogs Tail, Timothy 
and Mesquite. : 
Here in the Northwest lawns can be planted 
almost any time of the year (except Novem- 
ber, December, January and February) if the 
soil and seed are kept moist throughout the 
early growing stages. Because of the importance 
of keeping the soil moist during this period of 
growing it is most desirable to sow the seed 
either in early spring or early fall. Whatever 
the season, loosen the soil with a steel rake to a 
depth of one inch just before sowing, then 
divide the seed into equal parts, half to be 
sown as the sower walks back and forth in one 
direction (north and south) and the rest as he 
walks back and forth at right angles over the 
same area. A calm day permits more even dis- 
tribution and a cloudy one assures more mois- 
ture in the soil. 
As soon as the seed is sown the surface can 
be raked lightly with a fine tooth rake or coy- 

[27] 
ered with not more than 4 inch of top dress- 
ing. In either case the ground should be rolled 
(not too heavily) to firm the earth around the 
seed and promote quick germination. 
WATERING 
Watering should be done first gently and with 
a fine sprinkler to prevent washing. It should 
be done often enough and generously enough 
to keep the soil and seed from drying out. 
After the grass is well started the watering 
should be more thorough and less frequent. 
Deep watering encourages the develop- 
ment of deep roots upon which the future 
success of a lawn largely depends. Shallow 
watering or sprinkling tends to bring the roots 
near the surface where they are quickly affected 
by severe heat. 
MOWING 
In mowing a new lawn set the blades to cut 
not less than 2 or 3 inches above the ground. 
As the turf becomes thick it can be mowed 
closer although the longer the grass can be 
left, consistent with good appearance, the bet- 
ter for the grass. Shortly clipped lawns dry out 
fast during hot summer months and when this 
condition once starts it is very hard to check. 
It is best to catch and remove all grass clip- 
pings each time the lawn is mowed. If this is 
not done they will form a soggy mat at the soil 
surface robbing the soil of Nitrogen (needed to 
decompose vegetation) and cause a sour con- 
dition not beneficial to growing plants. 
ESTABLISHED LAWN 
To properly care for an established lawn a 
few simple rules should be followed each grow- 
ing season. Early in the spring the turf should 
be well raked with a steel or moss rake remov- 
ing all leaves and other material accumulated 
during the winter. An application of a complete 
plant food (4-12-4 formula) at the rate of four 
pounds to every one hundred square feet should 
be applied early in the spring to afford the 
lawn plenty of food right from the start. As dry 
weather comes on watering should be consis- 
tent and deep. The second application of fer- 
tilizer should be made about the first of July 
at the rate of two pounds per hundred square 
feet. This should be repeated again near the 
end of August. After the first rains in the fall 
a top dressing of one-third peat moss, one-third 
sand and one-third raw bone meal should be 
applied over the entire area at a thickness of 
one-fourth to one-half inch. If these steps are 
followed each year you will have a lawn that 
will be the envy of every home owner. 
