REG U S. PAT OFF PUBLISHED FIVE TIMES YEARLY AND DISTRIBUTED FREE TO LOVERS OF BEAUTIFUL TURF Vol. IX No. 3 H EN B IT April 1936 o £ Ci > § § O c o m p e t i t i on of other vegetation. The branch- ing from its lower base lower axils is a and characteristic that aids in identification. WE are introducing h e re a w e ed w h i ch h a r d ly gets its share of slander because too few people know it by name. While not as common as many of the familiar garden pests, Henbit bobs up fre- quently in nearly every section of the country and last year in particu- lar, m a ny specimens were sent in for identi- fication. The rounded, deeply scalloped leaves are sparsely hairy and ar- range themselves on op- posite sides of the stems. the base of Near the plant they have short leaf-stems but the upper ones are tightly clasp- ing. The small red or flowers grow purplish in clusters at both the terminals and where the leaves the stems. Their nectar frequently Other names—Dead Nettle, Blind attracts honey bees, a Nettle, Bee-Nettle. An annual or fact which accounts for biennial which propagates from seeds- Blc>oms from April to Octo- the name of Bee-Nettle. (Lamium amplexicaule, L.) HENBIT join ^ Z ^ Z ^ Z^ in Canada or the United States. . Henbit flourishes best in cool weather, devel- °ping seeds in early spring. With the heat of summer it usually dies down but revives with the advent of cool fall temperatures and immediately proceeds to infest the soil with a second abundant sowing of seed. These seeds produce the plants that appear the following spring. Suit- this weed With Eurasia lies the responsibility for intro- ducing into America. The origin of its name is more ob- scure. We can find no clue of association with poultry such as quack t It is prob grass boasts ably better' known as £ blind nettle, dead nettle, or bee nettle, and is a frequent visitor in lawns, gardens and waste places, especially where the soil is rich and damp. n j In full growth the stems are six to eight inches long. They seldom exceed the smaller lawns where growth is retarded by mowing and the length in COPYRIGHT, 1936, BY O. M. SCOTT & S O NS CO. able weather conditions or some slight disturbance such as raking may start the germination of seeds which have lain dormant but nevertheless viable for many years. Means of Control. Hand pulling before the bloom pe- riods of early spring and autumn is the most effective means of ridding a lawn of this pest. Close mowing as in the case of most annuals will prevent seed production and eventually clear the soil of previously deposited seeds. Where clover is not considered objectionable, a heavy seeding of it will often smother out a flourishing patch of Henbit. © Salting Down the Old Home Place IN a Sunday edition of the Portland Oregonian there appeared a story to the effect that a Mr. W. S. Jack of Sil- verton used salt on his lawn and had a beautiful one at that to prove to the na- tives that he wasn't such a freak after all. Here's an excerpt from the article as it appeared in the press: "For years I had been noticing," he explains, "how green the grass is at the coast. Even in summer when it is dry and golden in the valley, the coast re- gion is green. Twelve years ago I de- cided to try a salt experiment on my lawn," and Mr. Jack looks compla- cently down on one of the finest in Willamette Valley. He has two lawns, one thirty and the other more than fifty years old. "I fertilize my lawn twice a year," he continues. "Either I put the ferti- lizer on in the evening when there is a heavy dew or when it is raining. If necessary, I water it down. I use a commercial fertilizer. The salt I put on every two weeks the year around. I sow about two pounds of salt, prefer- ably coarse, on my lawn (which is about the size of two ordinary city lots.) I put it on like a light fall of hail. The best time for this, too, is at night or when it is raining. During the sum- mer I water it down." We could not believe that salt had been overlooked by turf authorities all these years if it had any merit for grass stimulation, so we called this story to the attention of an experienced agrono- mist. Here is his comment. is at "The newspaper clipping that you enclosed least interesting. Mr. Jack says, 'I fertilize my lawn twice each year.' He also implies that he sets the mower to cut as high as possible and that he leaves the clippings on the lawn. All of these practices will aid in maintaining good turf. He says his lawn is about the size of two ordinary city lots. This would be about 5,000 square feet. He puts two pounds of salt on every two weeks or about 52 pounds per year. This would amount to about 450 pounds per acre per year. I do not believe that salt is of any bene- fit nor will the amount he puts on be harmful, particularly since the rainfall in Oregon is heavy enough (more than 60 inches per year, to prevent accumu- lation of the salt." Anyway, Mr. Jack is getting his ex- ercise and, after all, he hasn't hurt his lawn (yet). The interesting angle is that folks along the Atlantic seaboard frequently write that the salt air ap- pears to be injurious to their lawns while Mr. Jack feels that his grass has an appetite for it. A killer of ants and moles, both noted for their lawn damaging habits, is announced by the American Cyana- mid and Chemical Corporation of New York. Cyanogas is the name of this destroyer and it is claimed that thirty cents' worth will kill a million ants. Dealers handling insecticides are being used as distributors so convenient sources of supply are available. Physician Finds New Crabgrass Killer T) Dr. M. E. McManes of Piqua, Ohio, you are indebted for the fol- lowing experience: " I have a strip 4 x 50 feet of grass be- tween sidewalk and curb that became almost totally infested with crab grass last summer. It seemed to come from nowhere since this has always been an ideal stretch of blue grass. "After studying all available litera- ture on crab grass I decided to experi- ment a little with the idea of chemical destruction. The first and only thing I tried seemed to be as near the right thing as has so far been published. I happened to have on hand a small quantity of Ammonium Per Sulphate, so thought if ordinary Ammonium Sul- phate had such a deleterious effect on the leaves the Per Sulphate with its ex- cess of oxygen should be much more capable of destruction. Well, it worked to perfection. Yes, the blue grass was also destroyed. Application was first by sprinkling, using a bottle such as is used for dampening clothes. Then I used a spray. Both methods were effi- cient. The first application was August 14th. In 48 hours all that was touched by the preparation was dead. Several days later I sowed some blue grass in that patch and this is now up about 2 inches (September 18th). At weekly intervals I applied more Per Sulphate to additional patches, some just before and some just after rain. I find it works best if not washed off. Last Sat- urday, September 15th, I applied it to the entire patch. Today, Monday, the crab grass seems as dead as the pro- verbial door nail. It did not seem to grow again wherever the first applica- tions were applied but since it also killed the blue grass (apparently) it was necessary to know if it also de- stroyed the soil fertility as some prepa- rations do. The thick growth of blue grass on the plot of first applications shows no ill effect on soil fertility. In writing this I am assuming this prepa- ration has not been previously used in this way. If so, and you think it is not too late in the season I will suggest that you experiment a little with it. Since this preparation is not extensively used, it may not be obtainable in local drug stores. I have a small quantity of it in tablet form (about 20 grains each) and if you care to try it will send you enough for a fair trial. I used six (6) of these tablets to a pint of water and found this sufficient for a patch about 3 feet square. If this is not new to you, just forget that I mentioned it." • Drops Detective Story to Read Lawn Care ANEW high in compliments for "Lawn Care" has just been set by Mr. E. S. Beagles, President of the Me- morial Album Company of Plymouth, Indiana. Here is his contribution: "May I express my appreciation for the very fine copy of 'Lawn Care' re- ceived today. It is wonderful—the most informative data of its kind I have ever seen. I am a reader of detective stories —and, honestly, 'Lawn Care' proved so interesting I stayed up until 2 A. M. reading it. I now have all those 'vil- lain' weeds on the spot." Another nice reference to this bulle- tin came from a man who is in his seventy-eighth year—Mr. J. A. Schil- ling, also a Hoosier, living at 616 Per- rin Avenue, Lafayette, Indiana. Mr. Schilling writes with the steady hand of a school boy: "Please accept my sincere thanks for your kindness in sending your interest- ing bulletin 'Lawn Care.' Have found much useful information in it and al- though seventy-eight years old I can still learn." Does Mr. Schilling have any seniors who are readers of "Lawn Care"? Ancient Game is Becoming Popular In the 12th and 13th centuries men were neglecting archery, the practice of which was necessary to public safety, to indulge in a new and fascinating sport called Bowls or Bowling on the Green. By the time of Richard II and Edward III it had become so attractive to young men and was so wasteful of their time that for a while this game of lawn bowling was forbidden by law. Still later it was subjected to "blue laws" along with liquor and gambling. It is doubtless for this reason that the game did not come to the United States during the Puritan days. But Lawn Bowling, which it is now most frequently called, is on the up- grade. There is a national association in this country which is attempting to popularize the sport. Thousands are now playing. For the above facts we are indebted to Prof. B. S. Pickett, head of the De- partment of Horticulture at Iowa State College. From this authority we have an explanation of how the game is played, what equipment is needed and how to construct the greens. Some ex- tra copies of this article have been mul- tigraphed and may be had for the asking. m The next issue of "Lawn Care" will be published in August. It is difficult to forecast what the months interven- ing may hold for grass. Authorities are not predicting any serious pest ravages this year. There is not likely to be a sod web worm attack, but there is some danger of a call by the hairy chinch bug which went into hibernation in some sections this last fall. We cordially invite readers of this bulletin to report interesting mainte- nance experiences of the present season. If you have success in conquering a lawn enemy, why not tell the other 149,- 999 readers of "Lawn Care" about it? # Scott Publications This issue of "Lawn Care" is just one of a series of such bulletins pub- lished five times each year. Subscrip- tions are free to anyone interested. In addition you can obtain several other Scott publications on lawns, including the following: Lawns—The amateur gardener's guide to better lawns. Condensed but very complete information on soils, fer- tilizing and seeding. Free. the most beautiful of all Bent Lawns—A practical discussion of lawn grasses. Tells how to plant with either seed or stolons. Several natural color illustrations. Free. Lawn Care—This is the fortieth is- sue of this bulletin which has been published continuously since 1928. In previous numbers the following lawn problems have been discussed: 1928—Crab Grass, Dandelions. 1929—Moss, Grubs and Beetles, Chick- weed, Buckhorn. 1930—Ground Ivy, Yarrow, Earth- worms, Heal-all, Ants. 1931—Speedwell, Creeping Buttercup, Moles, Knot Grass. 1932—Sheep Sorrel, Quack Grass, Spurge, Trefoil, Goose Grass. 1933—Nimble Will, Knawel, Terraces, Shepherd's Purse, Chinch Bugs. 1934—Sedge, Shade, Purslane. 1935—Peppergrass, Shade, Crabgrass, Summer Injury to Turf. 1936—White Clover in Lawns, Poa Annua. Send 10 cents in coin or stamps for all back issues of "Lawn Care" in paper binding. Imi- tation leather binders containing all issues and with capacity for five more years— fti.uO postage paid. For 20 cents additional, your name will be gold stamped on the cover. It makes a very nice gift for friends who are good lawn "addicts."