LAWN GRASSES 
WHICH CAN'T 
GO WRONG 
IN TEXAS 
COMMON RYE GRASS 
This grass is an annual. Its germination period is 
from 7 to 14 days and is rapid-growing, making 
a beautiful, compact lawn in just a few weeks. 
Rye grass is short-lived, however, doing well only 
in the winter and early spring and rapidly disap- 
pearing with the advent of warm weather. The 
leaves are coarse-textured and of a nice color. 
It succeeds in most soils but prefers medium to 
high fertility, a lot of moisture, and mild winters. 
The perfect cover crop to use with Carpet Grass 
for fall planting. In Texas it is seeded in the fall 
for green winter lawns then raked out in the 
spring. 5 Ibs. per 1000 sq. ft. 
30¢ Ib. Postpaid 
HULLED BERMUDA 
This is a perennial grass, pre-hulled for quicker 
germination. it is long-lived and has a spreading 
habit of growth and propagates by runners, under- 
ground rootstocks, and seed. Runners grow from 
2 to 5 or more inches in length. The leaves are 
short, flat and bluish-green in color. Widely used 
in Texas because of its ability to resist drought 
and hot sun. Grows in any soil which is fertile and 
not too wet. Thrives best in hot weather and will 
not usually survive heavy freezes. Turns brown 
in Fall and is dormant during the winter. 
3 Ibs. per_1000 sq. ft. 
$1.25 Ib. Postpaid 
CARPET GRASS 
A perennial. Not to be confused with St. Augus- 
tine grass which does not grow from seed. St. 
Augustine grass produces stolons and is established 
almost entirely by planting rooted runners. Carpe 
grass can be easily started from seed and is es- 
pecially adaptable for sandy and sandy loam soils, 
where the moisture is near the surface most of the 
year. It requires lots of water in San Antonio and 
surrounding areas. Used almost exclusively in this 
area for lawns because it is easy to establish 
and easy to maintain. Please bear in mind that 
Carpet grass does not germinate as readily as do 
Rye or Bermuda. It takes anywhere from sixty 
to ninety days for Carpet grass to actually im- 
merge from seed and it must be kept moist during 
all that time. But once it gets started! It’s just 
hard to beat. 3 Ibs. per 1000 sq. ft. 
$1.50 Ib. Postpaid 
YOUR GREEN LAWN 
CAN BE THE PERFECT SETTING 
FOR A LOVELY GARDEN 
A good green lawn is the starting point for any 
s New lawns can be made 
in the spring and in the fall but generally speaking, 
the Spring of the year seems to be the most widely 
accepted time in this area. But regardless of when 
you begin your lawn there are certain steps that 
must be followed if you want to have a really suc- 
successful home garden. 
cessful lawn with a deep root system and thick, 
healthy top growth. 
If You Are Making 
A New Lawn 
1 Spade Deeply. 
Soils should be spaded to a depth of at least 6 
inches. Drive the spade straight down with your 
foot and break each spadeful of earth as it is 
turned over. Dont’ spade when the ground is too 
wet. Soil is just right when you can crumble each 
spadeful with a slap of the spade. 
2 Pulverize Soil Thoroughly. 
If necessary work in humus material (Peat Moss 
is the best, we believe) or sand to condition the 
soil. Usually a steel tooth rake will break up the 
soil lumps and give you a fine, lump-free seed- 
bed. 
3 Put on 3 Pounds of Vigoro 
for each 100 square feet of area and work it into 
top inch or two of seed bed. This assures an 
ample supply of all the elements grass must get 
from the soil. Be sure and apply Vigoro evenly. 
é Seed with good Grass Seed. 
This is important. Buy your seed from a depend- 
able source. Carefully cleaned seed, low in weed 
content and high in germination cannot be sold 
cheaply. Expect to pay a fair price for good seed. 
Look at “‘bargain’’ seeds with distrust. Sow at 
the rate of 4 to 5 Ibs. per 1,000 square feet of 
area if it is either carpet or rye grass and 2 to 3 
Ibs. per 1000 square feet if it’s hulled Bermuda. 
Mix Bermuda seed with fine sand for better dis- 
tribution. If sowing by hand, sow half lengthwise 
and half crosswise. Rake the seed lightly into the 
soil. ; 
5 Roll the Lawn. 
Do this if it is possible. Rolling insures pertect 
contact between seed and soil. A tamper or wide 
board can be used on small areas when roller is 
not available. This step is essential and should 
not be omitted. 
If You Already Have 
A Good Lawn 
Established lawns need regular care 
if they are to remain beautifully 
green and lush. This care includes 
such thing's as plant feeding, reseed- 
ing, and proper mowing and water- 
ing. 
When feeding lawns in the spring, 
apply 3 pounds of Vigoro per 100 
square feet of area . when the 
grass is dry. Knock the plant food 
off the blades by ruffling the grass 
with the back of a rake and then 
soak thoroughly. When revitalizing 
lawns in fall, first spray the en- 
tire lawn area with selective lawn 
weed control. Swift’s HEnd-o-Weed 
(contains 2,4-D) will do an effective 
job along these lines. When weeds 
begin to die, apply 3 pounds of Vig- 
oro per 100 square feet and soak the 
lawn thoroughly. <A day or two 
later go over the lawn, loosening 
thin areas with a rake. Reseed these 
areas and roll or tamp them to make 
certain seed is in firm contact with 
the soil. 
In reseeding lawns, use about 3 
pounds of good grass seed per 1,000 
square feet of area. For example, 
do not try to plant Bermuda in dense 
shade because it simply will not 
thrive well in cool shady seclusion. 
Lawns should be watered thoroughly 
or rather, we should say, lawns should 
be SOAKED thoroughly to a depth 
of 4 to 5 inches. Avoid sprinkling. 
Sprinkling encourages a shallow root 
development and such turf is easily 
killed. Be sensible about mowing. 
Do not set the blades of your mower 
so that they cut almost down to the 
soil level. A top dressing of good 
soil (this is especially true of carpet 
grass) raked over the lawn to a 
depth of ™% of an inch will do won- 
ders for established lawns. A fine, 
sandy loam is ideal and may be aug- 
mented with compost, peat moss or 
fine grass cuttings. 
NINETEEN 
