Evening star., 1933-06-28
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E.. TRACEVELL.

| Not too much can be expected OF
grass seed sown at this time, there
fore 1t is essential to purchase a mix
ture with which one is familiar. IT
should be free from timothy, as this
stuff Is worse than weeds.
Wherever a weed is taken out, even
If only very small hole is made, as
much seed as can be picked between
the four fingers and the thumb should
fairly persiStently, over scattered
area, with any good fortune of rain
fall at all, the lawn maker should have
hundreds Of new grass blades shortly.
x X
If this procedure Is kept up, from
time to time. whenever the mood seizes
one, and wherever one sees weeds, it
is quite evident that by Autumn many
thousands Of real grass blades will be
growing where before only weeds grew.
If this is not killing two birds with
one stone, it is the next best thing to
it, and will do a great deal of gocd
of the sort one desires.
Do not worry about the crab grass
few Of the long runners may be
ripped up, from time to time, if this
| is done carefully, but no attention
should be paid to it, as whole, and
especially one should refuse to get down
on hands and knees about it.
! One Of the two objectives of this
combined theory and practice is to take
the gardener off his knees The cther,
Of course, is to get better grass and
more of it, in particular.
Then when Fall comes when lawns
| show tendency to die out, the grand
opportunity, next to Spring. has ar
| rived.
Sometime in early Fall a real re-
seeding should be begun. The weeds
and pestiferous forms of grasses have
been growing all Summer: they are
about tired out and willing to rest
until Spring.
This is the gardeners opportunity.
| BY throwing in plenty of fresh seed
he will get the jump on the weed, and
the crab grass, and all the rest OF
them o.
The new seed, never having expert
enced sunshine and growth, moisture
eager for the experience.
1t comes right up, and starts to grow.
/ In its lusty arrogance it pushes Out
the old plants, and may do the same
to some of the good grass plants, but
1t Will not make much difference.
1t will be the old struggle, called the
survival of the flttest, going on right
there before your eyes.
| X X X
Next Spring may see bare patches;
these should be utilized, in March, for
further onslaughts against the enemy.
Sow seed thickly, then, in order to
take advantage of every opportunity.
Dandelions, especially, should be up
rooted, If practical, and if one believes
in uprootings, and in the places left
grass seed should be put
1t is not necessary to uproot a dande-
lion, however, but merely to pull its
spraWling leaves off at the ground.
This leaves a nice patch of eartn
showing, in which grass seed may be
sown, and left to fight it out with the
dandelion tap root. In a surprising
number Of cases the grass wins easily.
Do not become obsessed with weeds,
In grass or elsewhere. Many amateur
gardeners spoil the pleasure Of garden
ing for themselves by perpetually fight
| ing weeds. They get weeds on the
brain" 1t is good to fight weeds, bu,
not to the extent that one sees nothing
else.
A few good weeds in a lawn will not
hurt lift the weed is of the right
green! There are few perfect lawns,
and one may wonder, in all honesty, If
their attainment is desirable, or worth
the trouble. A good lawn is work
enough.