P U B L I S H ED IN F E B R U A R Y, M A R C H. A P R I L, A U G U ST A ND S E P T E M B ER BY O. M. S C O TT & S O NS C O. M A R Y S V I L L E, O H IO Seventh Year Number 29 S P R I NG M A I N T E N A N CE H I N TS IT ISN'T a bit too early to make plans for the spring renovation of your lawn. The earlier you get started the better will be the results. Those who like to seed on honey- combed ground will no doubt find con- ditions favorable some time in late Feb- ruary or early March. Scattering the seed after a light snow is a good plan as it is easier to do an even job of seed- ing. As the snow thaws the seed settles into the ground. Lawns should be raked thoroughly as soon as the ground has thawed. This serves to scarify the surf a soil and also to remove leaves, dead grass and other debris that may have accumu- lated over winter. Fertilizing The next step is an application of the right grass food. From recent experi- ments we know it is best to do this even if the ground ,is frozen. As soon as the grass starts growing the food becomes available thereby giving the grass an extra push ahead of Crabgrass and other weeds which do not start until late spring. If fertilizer is put on while the weather is still quite cool there is no danger of burning even though it is not washed or brushed in. Early feed- ing was formerly discouraged because it was supposed that there was consider- able loss of food elements from wash- ing and leaching. It now appears that this loss is negligible. Additional evidence appears every day that the right way to maintain turf is to seed and feed regularly. But it is necessary to maintain the proper bal- ance between these treatments. Seed should be used to replace dead plants and to cover bare areas, while food is needed to nourish and strengthen the live grass plants. Regular feeding is the most important factor in weed control. It makes the grass plants more sturdy and aggressive, enabling them to crowd the weeds. The explanation of this lies in the fact that the general cultural practices of lawn maintenance, such as frequent mowing, are more favorable to grass than to most weeds. Unless seeding was done before, it should follow the fertilizer application. Rake it in lightly or cover it with some good weed-free soil applied as a top- dressing. A coating of about one-quarter inch will be beneficial to the seed as well as to the established plants. Rolling Spring rolling is important. A heavy roller is not required since the purpose is simply to firm grass crowns and roots into the soil. It is a mistake to try to level a lawn by rolling. If the roller used is heavy enough to accomplish that, it will pack the soil causing it to bake during the summer months. Sandy soil can stand heavier rolling than clay soils. It is best to roll after seeding but the time element is impor- tant. Usually there are just a few days in spring when a lawn is dry enough to be rolled without packing the soil, and yet sufficiently moist so the rolling C O P Y R I G HT BY O. M. S C O TT & S O NS C O. does some good. A lawn ought to be rolled then, even if it is necessary to roll again after seeding. m Spring Topdressing Proves Helpful This is what one L A WN C A RE reader of Pittsburgh has to say about top- dressing and fertilizing his lawn in one operation. We consider this a most practical solution to the problem of dis- tributing grass food uniformly. "In this connection, as you have sug- gested ideas on distribution of fertilizer on lawns, would say that the writer has had more success in mixing fertilizer with some other material, when using a top-dressing in the spring. "At that time of the year, lawns will frequently be benefited by a top- dressing of dirt anyhow and by using dirt that is not too wet, mixing some in a wheelbarrow, with the fertilizer, spreading on the lawn and then using the back of a rake, it accomplishes two purposes at one time. is the there "Where a clay sod fall before and allowed is maintained, sand is very beneficial and can be used also with the dirt and any other mate- rial required, such as lime or swamp humus if procurable. In many country districts lots of pure black humus in swamps that can be taken out to freeze out when it becomes almost like flour. This is very beneficial to lawns and a fine substance to mix fertilizer with. I always spread a lot of good, rich soil on boards and let it dry out sufficiently to be quite free of moisture and then mix it with the fertilizing materials, for spring use."—C. R. An- derson, Pittsburgh, Pa. Don't Feed Birds Good Lawn Seed Another customer makes this good for saving spring planted suggestion grass seed from famished sparrows: "In patching irregular worn spots in the spring I have had considerable suc- cess in sowing the seed in late February or early March when weather condi- tions give us the daily thaw in the sun with the nightly freeze following—but have had trouble at times with spar- rows eating some of the seed. However, last spring I hit upon a way to avoid this loss and give you my scheme for whatever use you may care to put it to. inadvertently the sparrows, last spring I thought "I feed the various native birds all winter long—cardinals, blue jays, etc., and too, although the type of feed in my feed- ing tray is solely for the former birds. However, that just before scattering the lawn seed I would put smaller feed in the tray than the peanuts and sunflower seeds I had been using. So about a week before I planted lawn seed I started to include small 'scratch feed' in the feeding tray. Did the sparrows like it? I'll say they did, but they left my lawn alone, as long as I kept the tray filled. And I I used up about twenty kept it full. pounds of this from the time I scattered grass seed until it sprouted. But this mixture of poor grade wheat, oats, buckwheat and small size cracked corn costs only 5 cents a pound, and I figure that my investment of about $1.00 this saved many times that amount in grass seed which remained untouched."—Allan C. Leja, Lakewood, Ohio. 'scratch feed' in O. M. SCOTT & SONS CO. MAR YS V I L LE • • OHIO EVERY PACKAGE OF SCOTTS LAWN SEED BEARS THIS TRADE-MARK AND IS SEALED FOR YOUR PROTECTION 2 29 a