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 Eighth Year Number 35 C R A B G R A SS C O M M E N TS IN SPEAKING of hand weeding, Dr. John Monteith, Jr., of the United States Golf Association says this in a recent issue of Golfdom: "It should be pointed out that there is still much hand-weeding that is not of turf early in the summer before they have a chance to produce any seed, the number of plants next year naturally will be very greatly reduced. Early picking also has the advantage of avoid- ing the big scars that are so commonly Side and top views of Crabgrass. Notice the shallow but extensive root system, the pronounced creeping tendency, and the prostrate seeding stems. effective simply because it is not done soon enough. Probably the most com- mon example to illustrate this mistake is that of removing Crabgrass. One fre- quently finds Crabgrass being removed from turf after it has already produced some seed. This grass is an annual and does not survive the winter. The next season's crop of Crabgrass comes from seed produced by plants this year or during previous years. "If Crabgrass plants are picked out in putting greens and found when Crabgrass weeding until late in summer or early fall." lawns is delayed €> Omaha Dentist Reports Writing about Crabgrass in a recent letter, Dr. S. S. Sears of Omaha, Nebraska, states: "The method I have finally arrived at after numerous experiments is one of continuous and diligent work but C O P Y R I G HT BY O. M. S C O TT & S O NS C O. which rewards one with the best of results. I rake and clean the lawn first with an ordinary garden rake then with the heavy iron rake with short teeth, to get everything out except grass; ferti- lize, wet down well and then seed the bare spots. From then on it is one con- tinuous practice of watchful waiting. As soon as the first small shoots of water grass appear I am out there every evening hard at work. lawn "One thing I have found out and I think is a good plan, is not to spray at all after the water grass starts—about once a week I wet the lawn down well by allowing the hose to run without the spray until the whole is com- pletely soaked. The way I found this out was that I noticed where my little boy 5 years old played with the hose and had the ground completely soaked there was a fine, healthy stand of grass whereas the rest of the lawn, no matter how much I sprinkled, never had the same appearance. C o n s e q u e n t ly I encouraged him in this sport but to change his theatre of operations. "If one really enjoys working on a lawn trying to make it look decent there is something fascinating in pulling this dirty little pest out—and it isn't hard work either, if one will get at it soon after the lawn has been soaked down." ® Kills Crabgrass W i th Kerosene Blowtorch "On a plot of about 1000 square feet I tried a different and to me a new method of Crabgrass control. Since my purpose was to destroy the seed, I did not mow this plot after the seed began to form. By the middle of Sep- tember the Crabgrass was from six to this plot. surface was inches high and was about all eight that could be seen on I secured a commercial kerosene weed burner and burned off everything to the ground. The then scratched with a steel rake and 10 pounds of Turf Builder and 2 pounds of Regular Mixture seed was applied. Within a week some of the original lawn grass was sending up new shoots and within six weeks the new seed had sprouted and it was hard to tell the grass had ever been burned. This year very little Crabgrass appeared and was easily removed by hand weeding. This is now the best plot of grass I have. "The torch burns about one gallon of kerosene per hour, and from 200 to 300 square feet per hour can be burned."— P. S. Rodeheaver, Takoma Park, Md. @ Healthy Turf Best Control As with most other lawn problems, the fight with Crabgrass will be much simpler if it is being waged on a lawn that was built right in the beginning. In fighting weeds the best defense is a good offense. If conditions are fairly favorable, grass will be strong enough to more than hold its own against all kinds of weeds. Emphasis is placed upon regular feed- ing in the spring and fall with the right grass food, and upon the method of mowing. A minimum height of cut of 1 l/i inches is recommended, particularly for the late spring and summer cuttings. It has been quite a satisfaction to receive letters L A WN C A RE telling how they have been able to control Crabgrass by following these suggestions. from many readers of O. M. SCOTT & S O NS CO. M A R Y S V I L LE • • O H IO EVERY PACKAGE OF SCOTTS LAWN SEED BEARS THIS TRADE-MARK AND IS SEALED FOR YOUR PROTECTION 2 35 a