EVEN if you paid a thousand dollars a bushel for your grass seed, and then spent as much more on the preparation of your land, you could not, I am sorry to say, escape having weeds.

The thing to do when you have them is to get rid of them, and this is accomplished only by getting right after them with a persistence proportionate to the abundance of the weeds. The knife is the only real weapon for this. After digging out your weeds, sow in grass seed with the idea of making the grass grow so thick that there will be no place for the weeds to creep in. Dandelions and plantains are simple matters that can be handled easily, but where Crab Grass shows up, there is certainly work ahead to get the best of it. It is a destroyer of the first rank, a veritable pest. It is an annual that seeds itself each year and kills out under the first frost, leaving great bald spaces in the lawn to show where it has been. Even after it has been killed by the frost its baneful influence is not ended, for it has spread broadcast its seeds for the next year's crop.

When you find it, dig it out. It means work and lots of it, but it is the only way to conquer it. Set the blades of the mower low, and after dragging the grass up with a rake, run the machine over it; and this should be done early in the year, before July. There is no weed to equal this as a nuisance.

On newly-made lawns the weeds are easily removed, and they should be carefully watched so as not to allow them to get too far ahead. Chickweed is almost as bad as Crab Grass, and when you find the combination, Crab Grass and Chickweed, the simplest solution is to spade or plow the place up in the fall and leave it exposed for the winter.

For the broad-leaved varieties of weeds there is a preparation of what is called sand on the market that I have tried with very good success. I sprinkle it on the weeds and within an hour afterwards they have shriveled and turned black.

While it doubtless is very efficient in destroying the top growth, I am unable to say that it is at all injurious to the roots, and may, perhaps, even stimulate them to renewed growth the following season. However, my experience with it was a happy one, for just as soon as the weeds died down I sowed in grass seed, which quickly germinated.

Worms, Ants, and Moles

Very often earthworms become very disfiguring on a grass plot. Where there are many present it is an indication that the earth is in poor condition, compacted, and needing humus. An application of strong lime-water will drive many to the surface, where they can be swept up; or a heavy rolling with a 1,500-lb. roller will do much to discourage them.

It is surprising how much damage a colony of ants can do on a lawn. They should be looked after the first time they are noticed, for they work rapidly, and the longer neglected the more difficult it is to eradicate them.

There are many remedies recommended, but the best one lies in the use of bisulphide of carbon. This is very effective, but it has come into such common use that a word of caution should be given as to its handling. It is very volatile and, when near flame, powerfully explosive, and should be handled with great care. Pour it into the runways of the ants, and then throw over these a mat. The fumes will speedily kill all the ants. A better way, however, is to drive a stick into the ground in several places where the colony is located, and in these holes pour the carbon, afterwards plugging the holes up tightly.

Moles are frequently found on lawns, but they are not serious because they can be easily controlled by heavily rolling or by traps made to catch them. Where there is a suspicion of the presence of moles, no time should be lost in getting after them. They sometimes work for a long time before their destructive borings are evident, and then it will take much labor to get ahead of them. Keep the heavy roller going as an excellent preventive.