You And Your Lawn

The word lawn comes from the Celtic word Launde or Lande, denoting an uncultivated or untilled and infertile area covered with ferns, broom or heath, certainly not the modern idea of what a lawn is or should be. Because this name conveyed the idea of an expanse of open space, the word gradually came to mean an open grassy glade in the forest. It was in this sense that Tennyson spoke when he wrote, "Those long, rank dark wood walks, drenched in dew, leading from lawn to lawn." From this evolved the idea of more or less natural, grassy open spaces, not in woodland but surrounding a house and separating it from the fields and woods. And, of course, the present-day concept of a lawn is of an unbroken expanse of manicured emerald sward, perfect as a golf green.

As a matter of fact, much of our difficulty with lawns and their upkeep comes from this ideal cherished by the average homeowner —the incredible perfection of a golf green in peak condition. For most of us, it is an impossible ideal. Nevertheless, we often see a man whose grounds are shaded by magnificent trees, struggling to produce a perfect expanse of sun-loving grasses that will match the popular concept of what should surround a suburban home. (For those of you who fit this description, I have a two-part suggestion: Read on through this book's chapters on the various difficulties and possibilities of lawn-making and upkeep. If your "problem spot" for grass is not solved, then turn to the suggestions on groundcovers in Chapter 10. You'll find there are groundcover plants to suit every situation, and with them you need not tolerate a mangy look anywhere on your property.)

Adverse Lawn Conditions

In the lawn we crowd as many as forty to sixty individual plants into a square foot of turf. As they struggle to survive under these conditions of intense competition, we further complicate things by cutting away the healthiest, most vigorous part of the leaf—the young tip. We do this not to make things hard for the plant but because we are trying to force a low, compact, artificially dwarfed habit of growth, entirely different from the natural upright habit of these species. (They grow 30 to 40 inches tall in the wild or in a meadow.)

These factors add up to an environment in which the individual plant is suppressed to produce a uniform whole. The grass plants can only survive if aided by you, the lawnowner. It is important that you appreciate the artificial nature of the conditions under which you must operate, so that you will know not only what to do and when, but why. A misguided homeowner is a lawn's worst enemy. Thus you will find explanations as well as suggestions throughout this book.

How much do you know, for example, about common Kentucky Bluegrass, perhaps the most widely-planted fine-turf grass in this country? As its name suggests, this grass species has naturalized so thoroughly along the banks of the Ohio River that it is considered a native, but actually it is from Europe. Originally, it probably came to the United States either in hay used for packing household goods or in fodder for cattle brought from England. For nearly two centuries, it has spread and naturalized in the fields of Kentucky, growing as vigorously in spring and fall as it ever did in England, but lapsing into near dormancy during the heat of summer. The livestock farmer in the Ohio Valley accepted this situation; he provided supplemental pasturage when Kentucky Bluegrass went dormant in midsummer.

In the home lawn, however, summer dormancy is much more than a nuisance. It comes at a time when outdoor living is at a peak. Today, with better grasses available, you no longer must accept "summer brownout" as a necessary evil. By the use of a true lawn grass, you can eliminate this headache.

Easy Information

At the same time, it is important to recognize that not all lawns need to be smooth expanses of green velvet turf from thaw-out in spring to freeze-up in fall. Common Kentucky Bluegrass still has a place where the extra care and expense needed to maintain high quality sod seems too much. There are degrees of lawn excellence, and the choice of the right grasses is dictated by various considerations of sun, soil and so forth. All of these are thoroughly treated in later chapters, as are such subjects as lawn diseases, fertilizing, mowing and what to grow in "difficult" areas which are totally unsuitable for grass. The information and the chapters, to the extent possible, are presented in logical "lawn culture" order. For instance, the subsoil is discussed before the topsoil, and so forth. Thus, "planting the lawn" comes along more than halfway through the book— but when you reach that chapter you will know the score about the vital inside workings of a lawn. Incidentally, for your further convenience, each chapter concludes with a summary ("Chips Off the Chapter") of the facts and advice just presented.

Before we go on, however, I want to mention two points (treated in detail later) which affect almost everything discussed in this book: 1. I think "temporary" lawns started in spring are a waste of energy. 2. I strongly favor starting permanent lawns in mid-to-late summer and early fall.

Chips Off The Chapter

1. Don't fight nature:  Grow the grasses best suited to your lawn's situation. If grass won't grow (because of excessive shade, etc.), then plant one of the many handsome ground covers.
2. Live modern: Make maximum use of the improved knowledge, grass species, lawn tools and materials available today.
3. Read everything in this book; thus you will not only know what to do and when—but why.

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