Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-08-19

they may crowd out the much slower
growing lawn grasses.
In the fall the garden is planted
and for the most part the harvest
has been gathered so there Is more
time in which to do good job
Moreover, with cold weather coming
on the grass stools out" and forms
low spreading crowns and produces
strong root development. This Is
especially true If a new lawn is In
the making.
Be sure to buy grass seed from a
dependable scotsman. That will be
your guarantee of quality. Buy a
mixture that is suited to this area
and to the location in which 1t Is
to be sown-in sun or shade, on leVel
ground or terrace.
There is a good reason for buying
mixture which is made up OF sew.
eral grasses. No one kind of grass
stays green throughout the season
Each must have its rest period so
in a mixture, one grass is dormant
while others are green. Then, too
some grasses which grow very rap.
idly serve as shade and protection
for some of the slower growing
grasses which in the end will really
form most of the fine green carpet
Grass seed should be soWn wher
there is little or no breeze-usually
early in the morning or late in thu
afternoon If the lawn is not spotty
the seed may be evenly distributed
If there are bare patches, more seee
should be sown in those spots. L
the area is just thin use about
pounds to 1000 square feet. That
is just about half the requirement
for seeding new lawn. To SOW The
seed evenly try mixing it with five
or six times the quantity of finel!
sifted top soil. Be sure to mix i
thoroughly
To do really good job, SOW The
seed in front of you as you walk w
and down from east to west ane
west to east. Then walk from NORTH
to south and back again. To maxi
it still more certain, walk diagonall,
across the lawn scattering the las
third of the seed. This should pre-
vent unevenness and result in {
uniform turf.
Now rake very lightly over tn,
whole area-raking from north t,
south and then east to west or VIC
versa. The idea is to mix the seet
with the top soil, so it doesn't mat
ter in which direction the raking i
done so long as it is carefully dom
both down and across.
The next step is to roll or tam
the soil in order to press the seed
firmly into the soil. This will hastel
termination. A light roller may b
used or soil tamper or the back Q
a spade will serve A very goo
method which certainly works an
which the youngsters would enjo
was suggested recently. Strap to tn
feet fiat boards about IL by Is inche
or somewhat less and walk over tn
newly seeded area.
! To water, and it should be thor
oughly watered right after seeding
use sprinkler which throws a fin
mist and allow it to remain in on
place until the soil is wet down O
3 inches. Be careful of a leaky host
4 Before planting the grass seed tn
ground should be vigorously rake
with a sharp toothed steel rake
Much crabgrass is removed in tina
way and some shallow-rooted tuft
of grass.
After this thorough raking a goo,
fertilizer should be scattered owe
the area and carefully raked in. /
5-10-5 mixture should be used. Thi
means S per cent nitrogen, 10 pc
cent phosphate and per cent pot
ash worked into the soil. If ney
lawn is being made, Is to 40 pound
to 1000 square feet is advocated, but
of course. remade lawn will re
quire a much smaller amount, de
depending largely upon the condi
ton of the lawn being remade.
In these days of the Japanes
beetle affection, it is a good idea t
apply the milky disease spore dust
This dust comes in packages soil
under trade name 1t will xii
the beetle grubs which hatch fror
the eggs laid in the soil by tn
adult beetle.
Use this milky disease dust by put
ting level teaspoonful on top O
the soil every feet each way. I
will protect the lawn this fall and il
the early spring and will, in time
help to destroy this very destructiv
pest. The product, as put on tn
market. is harmless to plants, ami
mails and people.
/ LANDSCAPING