P U B L I S H ED IN FEBRUARY. MARCH, APRIL, AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER BY O. M. SCOTT & SONS CO., MARYSVILLE, OHIO August 1940 THIRTEENTH YEAR Number 61 W O R LD CONDITIONS DISTURB SEED MARKET A QUESTION frequently put to us relatively small section so it is no won- der that authorities lift their eyebrows at reports of locally grown "adapted or acclimated seed brands." is this: "Where does all your seed come from? Is it grown in Ohio right around Marysville?" This is a perfectly natural query but the answer may be a surprise to many. To get the various ingredients that go into Scotts Lawn Seed, it is necessary to call upon thousands of farmers for their production of hundreds of thou- sands of acres. Such production in- volves at least ten states and as many overseas countries. Some of the most important varieties are grown only in a The seeds of lawn grasses are grown in those sections where climatic condi- tions are most favorable to production. This does not mean that such grasses are unadapted to the growing of turf in far removed sections, but simply that for the ripening of good plump weed- free seeds certain parts of the world offer specific advantages. The gathering together of these seeds is not as simple as it may sound. The first step in the direction of good quality is in the careful selection of raw mate- rials. Within a given producing area there may be sections that provide bet- ter growing conditions and also enjoy a greater freedom from weeds. The hu- man element is also a factor, for as with other crops some farmers are more effi- is a Here field of Chewings Fescue grow- ing near Dunedin, New Zealand. It is ready to be cut for seed. the same The picture opposite shows field being threshed and the seed bagged ready for the cleaner. C O P Y R I G HT 1940 B Y O. M. SCOTT a S O NS CO cient as producers than others. The choice lots are brought to Marysville, where they are carefully recleaned and blended to produce better lawns. Until the past year we looked to Eu- rope for many of our most important grass varieties. One after another of these sources has been shut off, starting first with Czechoslovakia. Poland came next. A consignment of 15 tons of seed was on dock for us at Gydnia that fate- ful first of September last year. Since then the Hungarian production has also been shut off along with all other central European sources. Strange as it may seem, Denmark was one of the most important sources of grass seed. By extreme good fortune we got a large shipment of seed afloat before avenues of export were closed. There was a margin of only five days. Far-off New Zealand and Australia are also important to us as producers of grass seed. The big handicap here is in transportation, since it takes about six weeks for steamers to make the trip. Add another week now for zigzagging. During a large part of the trip the boats are in the torrid zone where cargoes are subjected to extremes of heat and humidity. This condition is harmful to seed germination so we use refrigerated compartments to keep our seed con- stantly cool and dry to insure our high standards of germination. Heavy ocean traffic of food products has made it dif- ficult to get refrigerated space except at a substantial premium. All the while freight and insurance charges have soared. Other foreign suppliers of seed in- clude Scotland and Ireland. It is still possible to obtain stocks from there, but markets have worked much higher be- cause of the additional risk and mount- ing transportation costs. Thus it can be seen that war is a disturbing element even in the peace- ful atmosphere of the seed trade. The effects are particularly noticeable this year, as they followed two seasons of below normal production of grasses raised in this country. At the same time a demand for such seeds has greatly increased. In addition to the growing requirements of lawn owners, various governmental agencies are consuming enormous quantities. The increased use of seed for roadside planting, the sow- ing of grasses in soil erosion projects, the substitution of grasses for grains in the government program for con- trolling production, all have increased the consumption of grass seed. The case of the seedsmen is not dif- ferent from that of many other manu- facturers who have the problem of higher costs for raw materials. Ulti- mately it means raising prices or lower- ing quality. This applies particularly to the best quality of lawn seeds where only the finer grasses may be used and where no lower priced substitute can be tolerated. The seed trade has avoided using the war as an excuse to raise prices, yet some price adjustments have become necessary. In many quarters this price advance was reflected last fall or this past spring. We resisted any change, hoping for an improvement in market conditions. In- stead those conditions have become more and more serious. Therefore, this fall we are reluctantly forced to ask a small advance on the Regular Mixture price scale which has been in effect since 1934. Prices on the other Scott blends are being maintained and we hope no advance will be necessary. Im- portant is the fact that Scott quality is being faithfully maintained. @ "You might be interested to know that regularly we use our Lawn Master to spread Calcium Chloride on the road in front of our Michigan acres to keep the dust down. It does a perfect, eco- nomical job."—Mrs. Charles K. Stulik, 4000 Washington Blvd., Chicago, 111. Excessive Rains Are THE April Damaging To Turf issue of L A WN C A RE treated the "whys," "whens" and "hows" of watering lawns. It may seem that the watering subject was untimely since many communities reported rain for the majority of days in June. Actually the frequent showers dur- ing that period only served to illustrate what L A WN CARE tried to emphasize, namely, that excessive watering is apt to be injurious to lawns whether it be in the form of a succession of rains or over-use of the garden hose. In either case topgrowth is encouraged without corresponding root development. Lush foliage and shallow root systems both invite the hot, dry summer months. trouble during Leaf Spot Disease—Early in the sum- mer unseasonably cool, damp weather in many sections promoted Leaf Spot or Eye Spot on Fescue and Bluegrass turf. Upon close examination this brown effect could be seen as due to a multitude of small spots—about the size of a needle's eye—marring the in- dividual grass blades. Although these diseases retarded the growth of the grass, mowing practices, which had rank been accelerated by previous growth, were probably not relaxed. Thus the mower spread the disease to other parts of the lawn, delaying re- covery of the grass. A program of high, infrequent cutting and the use of a good lawn fertilizer should have been employed in such instances. Shallow Roots—Many lawns have been partially ruined this summer be- cause the shallow roots promoted by a moist surface soil were unable to sup- port the lush topgrowth after the rains stopped. This injury to turf roots was avoided in a few cases when the im- mediate need for water was realized. Incidentally this need developed much more suddenly than many lawn owners realized. It seemed inconceivable that grass could use more water so soon after the rains had stopped. The nature of the rainfall in most sections was such that large volumes fell during short intervals. While the total rainfall may not have been much if any above normal, its regular occur- rence succeeded in keeping lawns green but failed to fortify the turf for the battle against hot weather. The special treatment necessary to nurse lawns back to health under these conditions is suggested in No. 60 L A WN CARE under Special Problems. The same advice is well expressed in the follow- ing quotation from the July issue of Timely Turf Topics, published by the U. S. Golf Association, Green Section: "Excessive rainfall in recent weeks has produced a lush growth of grass in many districts. After periods of heavy rainfall or excessive watering, grass is apt to suffer unduly in sudden drouth. When turf receives too much water the grass roots will be close to the surface and therefore unable in times of drouth to reach the water present in the soil at lower depths. Careful watering at such times may greatly reduce the dam- age. A gradual reduction in the amount of water applied will give the grass a chance to send its roots down further into the soil and thus enable it to resist better the injury which will result when watering is stopped entirely. Raising the mower will provide for additional shading of the ground and will prevent excessive evaporation from the surface soil." m Poison Ivy Spreads On A L A WN CARE topic which struck fire was the one on Poison Ivy. Our readers went for it with enthusiasm. Comments are still being received. More reference has been made to immunizing the indi- vidual from Ivy Poison than to eradi- eating the plant in lawns. Here are a few recent remarks: "The bulletin on Poison Ivy is a dandy. I firmly believe that 90% of the state of Minnesota must be covered with Poison Ivy and Wood-Ticks. I think Mother Nature must have had a severe headache the day she created these two."—Neil M. Averill, 518 Fed- eral Building, St. Paul, Minn. "It seems to me that no one thinks of the best and most simple way of getting rid of this plant Poison Ivy. No vegeta- tion can survive a dose of plain gaso- line. I got rid of all the Ivy on my place with one dose. No danger, no damage to the ground, and so cheap! The gaso- line should be applied around the shoot that goes into the ground. That does away with the pest once and for all. Try it."—W. H. Chandler, 344 North Mountain Ave., Upper Montclair, N. J. "The method of eating leaves to de- velop immunity to Poison Ivy is a very old one. In the practice of medicine years ago I made the extract myself and prescribed small doses to establish im- munity and to cure Poison Ivy erup- tion. Today the same thing is done only the juice is commercially marketed and given by injections. Nothing new, only the forgotten brought to life."—Dr. B. A. Lungmus, 3103 North Green Bay Ave., Milwaukee, Wis. leaves of the plant "I have two neighbors who were sus- ceptible to Ivy poisoning and who have immunized themselves by eating the small small amounts. These friends can now pull up the plant freely without injuring themselves. Rumor has it that the treat- ment was also tried in C. C. C. camps." —Mrs. Julian W. Hill, 1106 Greenhill Ave., Wilmington, Del. in Scott Publications Lawn Care—Subjects featured in previous bulletins include: 1928 Plantain, Sodium Chlorate. 1929 Compost, Moss, Web Worms, Iron Sulphate, Buckhorn. 1930 Ground Ivy, Yarrow, Earth- worms, Heal-All, Ants. 1931 Speedwell, Creeping Buttercup, Moles, Knotweed. 1932 Sheep Sorrel, Quackgrass, Spurge, Trefoil, Goosegrass. 1933 Nimble Will, Knawel, Terraces, Shepherd's Purse, Ground Covers. 1934 Sedge, Shade, Purslane. 1935 Peppergrass, Crabgrass, Summer Injury. 1936 Clover, Poa Annua, Henbit, Fall Seeding, Foxtail. 1937 Honeycombed Soil, Grub worms, Orchard Grass, Soils, Injury from Excess Moisture. 1938 Dandelions, Chinch Bugs, Burlap Protection, Wild Garlic. 1939 Chickweed, Mowing, Dandelions, Fall Seeding, Poison Ivy. 1940 Spring Lawn Program, Organic Matter—Its Function and Use, Watering Lawns. Binder—An a t t r a c t i ve A full set of bulletins with index, in stiff paper binding will be sent for 25c. loose-leaf binder which contains all Lawn Care bulletins, with ample room for future issues—$1.00 postage paid. Good Lawns—The amateur garden- er's guide to better lawns. Contains a complete outline for building new lawns and improving old ones. Free. Bent Lawns—Illustrated new edition. Tells about the most beautiful of all lawn grasses—Scotts Creeping Bent. Free upon request. O. M. SCOTT & S O NS CO. MAR Y S V I L LE OHIO EVERY PACKAGE OF SCOTTS LAWN SEED BEARS THIS TRADE-MARK AND IS SEALED FOR YOUR PROTECTION