This picture tells an important story. Area above, sown 
in late September; area in foreground, sown in early 
April. All conditions identical. Photo in August. 
Rough grass in foreground is Crabgrass. 
After spreading the compost, rake it down well 
and roll the whole area. (Fill in and tamp down any 
new soft spots before seeding.) Rake over once more. 
At last you are ready to sow the lawn seed. 
This is an operation which is done best in late 
August or early September, when the cool days and 
nights of early autumn will get the new lawn off toa 
good start. 
To insure even distribution of seed, mark the en- 
tire lawn area off into ten, fifteen or twenty foot 
squares, using white string. One pound of seed will 
be needed for each two to two hundred and fifty 
square feet. For small lawns, you can use a small grass 
sower that is held in the hand and worked like a 
flour sifter. It will help to secure even distribution. 
Whether you use a seed sower or plant by hand, 
select a still day to avoid the wind seeding your 
neighbor’s lawn instead of yours. Divide the amount 
of seed you expect to use into two equal parts. If you 
sow by hand, use a circular motion of the arm, taking 
only a small handful of seed at a time, and moving 
forward very slowly, step by step. After seed has been 
sown over each marked area in one direction, use 
the second lot of seed to sow again over the same 
ground at right angles to the first sowing, to get an 
even distribution. 
For large areas, buy or rent a grass seed drill. Ex- 
periment with this on a ten by ten foot plot (one 
hundred square feet), until the seed control lever is 
adjusted to drop the desired amount of seed. 
After sowing, cover the seed very lightly by going 
over the surface with an iron rake, using the teeth or 
the back, according to the condition of the soil. 
When the seed is raked in, roll the entire lawn 
again, leaving it as smooth as the top of a cake. 
