Croquet lawn

“ Fine soil should be scattered over each depression where these are only slight, and a little seed sown about March; but when the turf is very uneven it is a better plan to lift it, fill up underneath with soil, and re-lay, rolling well so that it may settle down properly. To keep a lawn even constant rolling is most necessary. Even when the lawn is smooth, it is as well to some seed in the spring of every year, for there are sure to be weeds to eradicate, and this is apt to leave bare patches which mar the beauty of any lawn. ”

“ A little white clover or sweet vernal grass or sheep’s fescue may be added, if you fancy them, but they will not improve the appearance of the lawn. Roll the ground after seeding. Sow the seeds in September or in March or April, and under no circumstance yield to the advice to sow a little oats or rye to “protect the young grass.” Instead of protecting, they will rob the slender grasses of what they most need.
Now wait a little. Do not be discouraged if some ugly weeds get the start of the numerous green hairs which slowly follow. ”

“ In the fall mow less frequently, and let it go into the winter with a long coat of grass. If the Lawn is mown as often as is needed, it will not be necessary to rake off the trimmings. In fall, top-dress the Lawn with commercial fertilizer at the rate of 500 pounds to the acre. If the Lawn has not been raked clean of all the trimmings and decayed refuse which covers the surface of the ground, it is not necessary to dress it with stable manure; for manure is unsightly, unsavory, and often brings in weeds. Many persons make the mistake of raking the Lawn clean in late fall. ”

“ We use one and two-horse cultivators and run the shovels to within three or four inches of the plants and two to three inches deep.
But few of us can cultivate in this way. Field cultivating methods are hard to apply to the lawn and garden. But we may get the same results in other ways. Clumps of peonies on the lawn should be so planted that a cultivated space encircling the [Pg 404] plant at least a foot wide is left. This space should be covered in the fall with a mulch of well rotted barnyard manure which should be forked or spaded into the soil in the spring. ”

“ The Mixture of Grasses is secured by constant mowing and rolling, by which means anything like a wild method of grass-growth is avoided. When, however, a lawn is left for a long time without such careful treatment, some of the grasses are sure to stool out and grow bunchy. In this case, the quickest way of putting the matter to rights will be to remove the offending tufts, and introduce new turf, taking care to keep the whole in order by the scythe and the roller. ”

“ The potting should be done in batches to insure a succession of flowers, and the first lot may be put in at the end of August, or beginning of September. They should have the benefit of really good soil; a mixture of leaf-mould and loam, with the addition of a little powdered charcoal, will suit them exactly. In preparing the pots, place a layer of light manure above the crocks, which will assist the drainage and benefit the plants. Then fill with compost to within two inches of the top, and lay in the roots; add soil to a level with the rim, and press lightly down. ”

“ This, of course, would lead us to discourage any couch-like grass. If, then, we have plots, and the soil of the lawn be sufficiently moist, we should recommend Poa trivialis to be sought in its stead.
Something like uniformity of colour is desirable; as, if we see bunches of the silvery-leaved Soft Grass, or the brown patches of the Fiorin, it is so unsightly that we should feel the necessity of introducing a new turf where it occurs.
2. Lawn Weeds.—Plantains, dandelions, and daisies can only be considered weeds whenever they occur in grass, but especially in the lawn. ”

“ Perennial weeds should be faithfully dug out or destroyed in some way.
Every year, add a top dressing of some commercial fertilizer or a little finely pulverized compost which may be brushed in. No one will disfigure his front yard with coarse manure spread on the lawn for five months of the year. ”

“ Never put manure onto the lawn, however, nor onto the surface of the ground anywhere, for it is always full of weed seeds, and these will overrun everything in no time at all, ruining the turf and making the garden a perfect plague-spot. Use it only when the early work of turning over the soil is going on, so that it can be turned under the surface by spading or plowing. ”

“ Whenever the earth looks black and sodden, the plant should be turned out of the pot, and, after the black earth has been carefully shaken from the root, it should be repotted in fresh soil, an inch or more in the bottom of the pot being filled in with small pieces of broken crocks.
In February or March greenhouse plants should be looked over, and repotted where necessary; those that are too tall should be cut in, and cuttings made of their shoots. The young plants raised from cuttings made in autumn should be repotted in larger pots for flowering ”

“ In preparing the pots place three or four moderate-sized crocks in the bottom: then fill with prepared soil, and prick out the plants at equal distances apart round the outside. Each pot should be filled with plants that will produce flowers of the same colour, otherwise the effect will be far from satisfactory when they are in bloom. After they are all pricked off, plunge them in a bed of leaf mould, or partly decayed manure in the borders. In either case the pots must stand upon a hard bottom to prevent the worms getting into the pots. ”

“ Let us stand beneath this low-branched elder.
"We cannot see what flowers are at our feet,"
but that there is violet in abundance we have the testimony of a sense which the darkness does not affect, the same which informed us of the presence of the garlic. Over the hedge the sheep are cropping the clover with short, sharp bites—one, two, three, four, five bites—then three or four shiftings of the short black legs, and again "crop, crop." So the woolly backs are bent all the night, the soft ears not erected as by day, but laid back against the shoulders. Sheep sleep little. ”

“ Cultivation: Thorough drainage is essential, and a compost of half peat, the other half made up of fibrous loam, leaf soil, and sand, in equal quantities. They cannot have too much light and air, and may be grown to almost any size by shifting from one pot to a size larger. In repotting, the whole of the crocks should be taken away from the base of the ball of soil and roots, and the top should also be removed till the fine roots are reached. ”

“ The soil to be rich, light, and the pots to have a good supply of crocks at the bottom, as the success of growing this favourite plant through the winter will depend in a great measure upon the drainage and keeping the plants dry and untouched by frosts. Those who have a hotbed frame will find it useful to start the seeds by moderate heat. Others who have no such convenience may place their pots in a cold frame in a sheltered situation, and upon a floor of rough stones overlaid with ashes. ”

“ The easiest way to spoil a good lawn is to put a flower-bed in it; and the most effective way in which to show off flowers to the least advantage is to plant them in a bed in the greensward. Flowers need a background. We do not hang our pictures on fence-posts. If flowers are to be grown on a lawn, let them be of the hardy kind, which can be naturalized in the sod and which grow freely in the tall unmown grass; or else perennials of such nature that they make attractive clumps by themselves. ”

“ The lawn will ordinarily produce a heavy crop of weeds the first year, especially if much stable manure has been used. The weeds need not be pulled, unless such vicious intruders as docks or other perennial plants gain a foothold; but the area should be mown frequently with a lawn-mower. The annual weeds die at the approach of cold, and they are kept down by the use of the lawn-mower, while the grass is not injured.
It rarely happens that every part of the lawn will have an equal catch of grass. ”

“ In some places, so dense was the jungle of unwieldy bushes that these walks were quite impassable.
"What quantities of fruit you will have!" remarked Helen, to whom this huge garden was a novel sight.
"Yes, there will be a fine crop of strawberries—at least I hope so, for nothing pays so well," rejoined the distinguished-looking, but practical Dido. "We make a good deal out of the fruit; and we work hard ourselves; not in fancy aprons and with little trowels, but in real sober earnest; we plant, and prune, and weed, and water; and on the whole the garden is a financial success. ”

“ The bare or sparsely seeded places should be sown again every fall and spring until the lawn is finally complete. In fact, it requires constant attention to keep a lawn in good sod, and it must be continuously in the process of making. It is not every lawn area, or every part of the area, that is adapted to grass; and it may require long study to find out why it is not. Bare or poor places should be hetcheled up strongly with an iron-toothed rake, perhaps fertilized again, and then reseeded. ”

“ With no greenhouse at all, these can be grown beautifully, simply with the aid of a coldframe. But where a house is to be had, the season of blooming is, of course, much longer. The essential thing is to get strong, healthy plants. As with the carnations, if only a few are wanted, they may be grown in pots, using the six-inch size. The soil, whether for pots or benches, should be somewhat heavier than that prepared for carnations, using one-fourth to one-fifth cow manure added to the loam or rotted sod. ”

“ CULTIVATION The home orchard, to give the very finest quality of fruit, must be given careful and thorough cultivation. In the case of scattered trees, where it is not practicable to use a horse, this can be given by working a space four to six feet wide about each tree. Every spring the soil should be loosened up, with the cultivator or fork, as the case may be, and kept stirred during the early part of the summer. Unless the soil is rich, a fertilizer, high in potash and not too high in nitrogen, should be given in the spring. Manure and phosphate rock, as suggested above, is as good as any. ”

“ By frequently raking the ground over, the annual weeds do not get a chance to start. In the rich soil the plants make great, bushy crowns that nearly touch each other, and as they begin to blossom, the whole space between them can be mulched with straw, grass, etc. The runners can easily be cut away when the plants are thus isolated. Where there are not many white grubs in the soil, the hill system is well adapted to meet garden culture, and the result, in a prolonged season of large, beautiful fruit, will be most satisfactory. ”

“ Nearly every Lawn will need patching in this way from year to year. If the Lawn is attended to in fall and spring by sowing grass seed, the weeds will rarely do serious mischief. When weeds are troublesome on the Lawn, it means that there is not sufficient grass, and every effort should be made to get more grass. Therefore, when the perennial weeds are pulled out, sow more grass seed.
A picturesque rill on the lawn
When narrow-leaved plantain bothers, it is an indication that the land is too poor and dry for grass. ”

“ But any good soil, provided only it is rich and thoroughly drained, will produce good results. If a few vines are to be set against walls, or in other out-of-the-way places, prepare the ground for them by excavating a good-sized hole, putting in a foot of coal cinders or other drainage material, and refilling with good heavy loam, enriched with old, well rotted manure and half a peck of wood ashes. For culture in the garden, such special preparation will not be necessary—although, if the soil is not in good shape, it will be advisable slightly to enrich the hills. ”

“ After sowing, roll the surface of the lawn to imbed the seed in the soil, and make the ground firm enough about it to retain sufficient moisture to insure germination. In three or four days the tiny blades ought to begin to show. In a week the surface will seem covered with a green mist, and in a fortnight's time you will be able to see, with a little exercise of the imagination, the kind of lawn you are going to have. If the season is a dry one it may be well to sprinkle the soil every day, after sundown. ”

“ Except for the sake of increase, the less they are disturbed the better. They are excellent subjects for pot culture (some can only be managed thus, unless planted out in a house) , and may be potted as early in the autumn as possible, in 8in., 10in., or 12in. pots. Thorough drainage is essential; arrange the crocks carefully, and place a layer of thin turfy loam over them. A compost of equal parts turfy loam, leaf mold, and fibrous peat, with an abundance of sand, will suit them admirably. ”

“ Good herbage will grow on bog thus treated, but as much as possible should at once be put into root-crops, with farmyard manure for potatoes and turnips. The more lime you give the better will be your crop, and, treated thus, there is no doubt that even during the first year, land so reclaimed will yield remunerative crops. People ask, ‘But will not the whole thing go back to bog?’ Of course it will if not kept under proper rotation, which we find to be one of five years—namely, roots followed by oats, laid down with clover and grass seed, which remains for two years. ”

“ Of course it is possible to practice crop rotation to some extent within the limits of even the small vegetable garden, but it will be much better, if possible, to rotate the entire garden-patch.
All these things, then, one has to keep in mind in picking the spot best suited for the home vegetable garden. It should be, if possible, of convenient access; it should have a warm exposure and be well enriched, well worked-up soil, not too light nor too heavy, and by all means well drained. If it has been thoroughly cultivated for a year or two previous, so much the better. ”

“ In dry weather the fork should not be used during the growing or bearing season. The turning down of a stratum of dry, hot soil next to the roots must cause a sudden check and injury from which only a soaking rain can bring full relief. But in moist weather, and periods preceding and following the blossoming and fruiting season, I have often used the fork to advantage, especially if there is a sod of short, succulent weeds to be turned under as a green crop. If the ground between the hills was stirred frequently with an iron garden-rake, the weeds would not have a chance to start. ”