Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 39, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 June 1875 — The Care of Lawns. [ARTICLE]

The Care of Lawns.

In response to the inquiries of a correspondent, the Country Gentleman gives the following directions for the preparation of a lawn and keeping it in order: If the surface is rough, there are two ways for making it smooth and even.’The first is by breaking up the whole ground, working and reworking till fine and mellow, and reseeding or returfing. If the ground is reseeded, sow at the rate of at least two bushels of grass seed per acre, and roll or brush it in. Red-top, white clover and Kentucky blue grass will give a good green carpet. If returfed, make the bare surface perfectly even and level; cut the turf from an old, even pasture, with straight edges, by means of a stretched line, and then invert the pieces or blocks on a broad board, and scrape the earth side perfectly even by means of a sharp hoe. They will thus form an even surface when laid, and rolling will make the whole as smooth as a floor. Tbe second mode of making an ever surface is to apply sand or fine sandy loam to the-surface,; and rake it level, by which it will fill up all hollows or depressions, and the grass will grow through the sand. This is well adapted to lawns which have but slight inequalities of surface. If the defect consists in the grass being too thin or sparse on the lawn the whole surface mawbe loosened with a sharp steel rake (or a fine sharp harrow on a larger scale) and grass seed sown as already directed; and its germination and growth will be greatly assisted if the whole surface is dressed with fine compost before sowing and raking. In some instances a better seeding will be effected by breaking up, as already described. If the lawn is defective from the growth of coarse grass or weeds there are two modes of treatment. One is to pull up all the weeds immediately after a long rain, when the ground is soft, or to cut them out with a spud; and the other is to summer-fallow the whole ground for one season, keeping the surface stirred and clean all the time, which will kill nearly all weeds. This is to be resorted to only in case the lawn is full of weeds and in a rather desperate condition to warrant it. To keep a lawn in good condition apply a top-dressing of some fertilizer late in autumn, spreading it perfectly even. Coarse manure is objectionable for two reasons, namely: its repulsive character all winter whenever the ground is bare of snow and the liability to scatter foul seed in this way. But if»nothing better can be had be careful to spread it perfectly even and not leave it in lumps, as well as to rake off all the fibrous material left on the ground early in spring. Finelypulverized compost answers well, or a compost made of guano or of hen manure. The latter may be undiluted, provided it is in fine powder, or it may be made into a fine compost with road dust. On some soils superphosphate answers well, oh others it has no effect. The manure' or composts may be applied in autumn, the more concentrated fertilizers early in spring. The surface having been already made perfectly even will require no more rolling than is given to it by tbfe lawn-mow-ers. When the whole lawn is not more than an acre or so it may be kept cut short in perfect condition by means of a hand machine and at trifling expense. Jn early summer, when the grass grows rapidly, it should be cut as often T as every five days; later in the season not so often. This will enable you always to “ tread on velvet.’’