Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-27
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

/ not. The blades will have dificult
time to get through, in all likelihood.
but they will appear. Neither time
| nor tide nor leaves can hold back the
grass blades, once Nature starts them
| again on their upward course. The
mystery of their progress is the mys-
| terry of life, which no man has an
| swered, even after centuries of articu-
late striving. Some think that the
why" of life should go into the dis
card, and that scientific curiosity and
determination should replace it, One
may wonder. To know the why" seems
to be justifiable as long as man can
wonder, he will wonder over life and
living. and always his minG and heart
will go back home to the Unsuitable
question, Why? Surely he who suf-
fers most of all created things. be-
cause he knows, has a right 70 know
this, in the end.
+ X X
The simple pleasure of cleaning up
the yard brings into play the simple
virtues of the home. There Is more
of housekeeping in 1t than gardening,
IL one gets down to definition of terms.
more truly sweeping than raking, and
many homeowners are turning to So
called broom rakes. in which a broom
like sweeping motion replaces the old
drawing stroke of the hand rake
1t is q curious and amazing aggre-
CATION of leaves, twigS, old blossoms
and whatnot which the gardener rakes
or sweeps off his yard.
The amount Of it always astounds
him.
Before he is fairly started he has
a pile of it large enough TO mulch all
the flower beds on his domain.
This valuable detritus mostly is
burned whereas it had better be
saved, to be composted with a bit Of
lime at intervals. to be TUNED by Ma
lures chemistry into most valuable
material.
Old Winter mulches, placed on beds
to keep in the Winter freezes mot to
keep them out, as often supposed) f.
need to be removed at this time, II the
task has not already been done. 1t
may be accomplished as q part OF the
yard-cleaning process.
Pruning Of rosebuShss and certain
other shrubs-yeS. roses are shrubs, at
bottom-is also part of the Yard
cleaning Job, an essential part, one
in the month, but which Is better done
now than never.
Many homeowners are afraid of
the pruning shears, as well they may
be, If they do not use elementary eau
ton and il they will not go to the
trouble to study their plants.
The elementary division of roses IS
easy-bushes, which should be pruned
back to not over a foot high, and
climbers, which should not be pruned
at all at this time. The former grow
their blooms on new wood, whereas
the climbers grow them on old. There
fore, II climbing roses are pruned now,
the chances are that they viii bear no
roses at all.
This Is q good time to look over the
place, as a place, and 10 decide what
changes shall be made, If any. The
earlier one comes to a determination,
the sooner 1t will be when the change
becomes an accomplished fact.
After all, a gardener must be O bit
impatient; he must want to see oI4
beds. which he has decided shall be
turned back into grass, flourish as
lawn. There Is no particular pleasure
in the halfway state, when they are
neither flowers nor grass
To decide quickly and TO plant gross
seed at once, In order to take ad-
vantage of every day of growing
weather. is TO get q real jump on the
season and to make yard cleaning
something more than q mere raking
Of leaves.