23rd Year No 113r T.M. REO PUBLISHED FIVE TIMES YEARLY FOR LAWNTHUSIASTS A ND THEY STILL BITE THE B A IT is a bit different at times. But the racket is still the same as frequently described in LAWN CARE. A truck loaded with what looks like "rich, black dirt" pulls up in front of a nice looking home. Usually two men are aboard, one of the spokesman. Typically the trick is to put ten bas- kets of the "magic" stuff on the lawn but claim to use 50 or 100. By some pretext or other, the owner so he is not in position to count. They make their price so high they can cut 2 0% or more from the bill and still walk away with several hundred dol- lars clear profit. they maneuver A new quirk was reported recently by a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, news- paper. A couple of husky young men offered to apply "humus" at 7 cents per bushel. The owner said okay. He thought it was cheap. When the pair had finished, they demanded 70 cents the owner had per basket, claiming misunderstood their price quotation. Because they were big and threatening, they got the money. The papers of Keane, New Hamp- shire, tell of the arrest and subsequent conviction of two men who were oper- them He spins a glib story that would outdo the best old time medicine men. For so much a basket they will really fix up the lawn because their stuff pro- vides humus, seed, weed killer, and even vitamins. Sometimes they promise permanent dampness. fertilizer, Actually all they have is worthless, tired old muck or other exhausted or- ganic material. Surprisingly those who should know better are the ones who so often lawyers, busi- ness men, besides the nice widows and maiden ladies who are supposed to be the gullible ones. fall—doctors, ating this racket in their town. Pre- viously they had mulcted several resi- dents, including two doctors. The same operators are reported to have taken over $500 from several professional and business men in Greenfield, Mass. the followed In many instances of the black dirt racket, trucks bear out-of-state licenses. Instead of arousing suspicion, this seems to lend enchantment. The racket would be stopped if lawn own- ers the oft-repeated advice of LAWN CARE to "buy soil, humus, or lawn and nursery work and services from a local concern that can provide satisfactory references.', Know landscape man or nurseryman. your There are qualified and legitimate operators in every community. local • By the time of killing in applying Crabgrass Crabgrass plants will have dropped sands of seed value crop has been set for only next summer to stop the new crop before can damage frost, untreated thou- to the soil. There is then no controls. The the is start a control program it the next year so to do thing the lawn. • Better Keep Your M o w e r! Several feature writers have excited many folks this year by optimistic re- ports on a chemical that is supposed to halt the growth of grass, but still keep it nice and green. Let no lawn mower manufacturer jump out of the office window in des- pair. The magic of chemistry isn't that good yet. Perhaps an important place in horticulture and agriculture will be found for Maleic Hydrazide. last However, Scotts Research tests year and again this year show little promise for its use on lawns. A rate of spray that stopped growth, did it by the death method. In re- peated tests it invariably discolored and injured the grass to the extent that it would displease any home owner. A the advice the present Common sense would seem to clas- sify this as an act against Nature. Stop growth and you stop life. When Newfoundland dogs can be held down to Pekinese size and you can throw away your razor because whiskers stop growing, maybe lawns can be so treated that the mower can be put into moth balls. For is keep it in good state of repair. is that Crabgrass is killed "by doses which do not seem to afiect the good permanent grasses and Bent." Perhaps so under certain con- ditions but in a series of tests by Scotts Lawn Research all three of these vari- eties were killed at rates much lower than needed fact applications below the critical range for Bluegrass actually seemed to give Crabgrass a new lease on life. like Bluegrass, Fescue for Crabgrass. further claim for M-H In " Me a nd Scotts p r o d u c ts d o ne i t ," f or t he h o n o rs in w as of B i l l i n g s, M o n t a n a, a f t er t op t he m o st l a wn cludes w a t e r. He cuts h i g h, p i n gs b ut a f t er m o ws t he j o k i ng c o m m e nt of C. F. Farris he t o ok b e a u t i f ul in- a nd t he clip- t h ey a re d ry he cross- o v er t o w n. His success p l e n ty g r a ss f o r m u la f o od to l a w n. scatter e v e n ly leaves t h em of V e t e r an R e a d er R e m i n ds Us H ow Late In The Fall The first issue of LAWN CARE, August 1928, was sent to not more than five thousand souls. At least one of these folks has a sharp memory and a valuable file of the early bulletins as witness this letter: Sirs: Many congratulations on I have known first the production of your new compound, SCUTL, for the con- for about trol of Crabgrass. to twenty-four years—since reacted your advertisement on the in you National Geographic Magazine — that vexacious have 1928, problem. the "King of No.. 2 ), which is devoted the Fall Pests," Crabgrass, the following significant been wrestling with (September, statement: I lawn "Vol. to is seed this In 1" " T he surest way to rid the ground the plants by to pull is Jun£ and July . . of Crabgrass hand during Following the fact that in mind the above directions and keep- in your many ing L A WN CARE bulletins you have always ad- vised against bare spots by keeping turf thick, I have been more than ordinarily suc- lawn cessful pests because mine is a small grass p l o t— and hand pulling of weeds for me has not been this worst of too arduous a combating task. the in from May I take this occasion to thank you for bulletins the many, many L A WN CARE the beginning. Each one has sent me its own particular and absorbing mes- had its sage and after filed away significant passages, long- for time devotees who in better lawns, but who—at 68—still considers him- self an attentive amateur. reference by one of your studying and marking it has been interested future is Roslindale, Boston, Mass. T H O M AS J. F L Y NN SIRS: lawn I have discovered My neighbors and most perfect to behold, unquestionably 48 states. Upon he informed us years ago, using all Scotts products. the it has been our privilege the inquiry of the proud owner, ten turf was installed finest the the in H E N RY H O R O V I TZ Jamaica 3, N. Y. Lincoln, Nebraska. For one reason or another, folks find winter weather imminent before they can get their fall lawn work done. Par- ticularly is this true where a new home has been built and is such that the lawn can't be worked on until quite late. the schedule The question is put to the editors thousands of times, "Shall I seed at this late date or wait until spring?" Generally the answer is, "If you can get the ground ready, go ahead. There is better than an even chance of the lying dormant but uninjured seed through the winter, ready to sprout when the soil warms in the spring." This bit of advice has backfired in the last couple of years because of mild weather over a large part of the coun- try. Ordinarily the seed could be ex- pected to be under frozen conditions which would preserve it as a deep freeze does with food products. If the winter is mild the seed is apt to rot and its germinating ability destroyed. So the decision to seed after mid- October hinges on long range weather forecasting which may be by hunch or by the old timers' signs that supposedly portend whether or not it's to be a real old-fashioned winter. I I had noted 106, suggestions of implements for in your L A WN C A RE No. loosening the soil crust of old lawns. Instead of using any of took one these of curved- tooth rakes which are designed for pulling Crabgrass, o ut straightened the consid- tapping- it with a hammer, and, erably by tool in my opinion, made a more effective than those suggested. Used with a hacking motion it breaks up the soil of bare spots with little damage to the remaining grass. those teeth RAY E. S N E L L. SIRS • • Most any Lawn Reseeding Suggestions lawn requires additional seeding from time to time. Bald spots develop because of injury or as a result cf holes left by departing weeds. In the fall the voids left by retreating Crab- grass or Bermuda grass should be filled-in with good seed to restore a •solid green covering. ing off and other diseases. The idea of sowing extra heavily because of poor soil is exactly wrong. The poorer the soil, the fewer plants it will support. Generous use of grass food should accompany heavy seedings. HELPING THE SEED Growing conditions are better for seedings in the early spring or early fall. If the need for seeding develops at some other time, it should be accom- in those plished to get grass started places before unwanted weeds take over. If the turf thins out, a general seed- ing is advisable. Otherwise spot seed- ing only is sufficient. Some folks use their spreaders to sow lightly several times a year so they can enjoy the fresh, bright color of seedling grass. METHOD First choice for general over-all seed- ing is a mechanical distributor like the Scott Spreader. This saves seed and enables more even application. As a matter of fact is probably more economical than spot seeding if much area requires it. it In hand broadcasting it's a good idea to mix the seed with an equal bulk of inert material such as sand, screened soil or even cornmeal. It is difficult for the average person to sow seed as spar- ingly as it should be sown unless it is somehow increased in bulk. in that it is unhealthy EXCESSIVE SEEDING HARMFUL Plant life is similar to human or ani- to have mal them living in too crowded conditions. If too much seed is sown, the soil will not supply enough moisture or nutri- ents to support the crowded seedlings. They will consequently be weakened and more subject to ravages of damp- Many have difficulty in getting grass started in bare or thin areas of estab- lished lawns. Such failures are mainly due to merely scattering seed on top of the ground. There it is easy prey to birds, winds and washing, driving rainfall, or if it escapes these fates, the seedlings die for want of moisture. A little care in reseeding bare spots brings better results. Here are some sugges- tions: 1. Loosen and fine the soil c r u st by l i g h t ly chopping it with a flat garden spade, axe or spike tamp. Other good implements include the half moon turf edger or a flat walk scraper. 2. Topdress with good soil. This may follow seeding, if no more than a quarter-inch is used. If a heavier covering, seed after soil is spread and then rake seed into loose soil and firm by tamping and rolling. In warm, dry weather try to keep surface moist until the seedlings are well rooted. This may mean quite fre- quent watering. If the weather is cold or quite dry seed can lie dormant for many weeks without injury to it. Germination will take place when favorable conditions arrive.