VOL. LX.
INDIANAPOLIS, AUGUST 5, 1905.
NO. 31.
gxpzxiznci. gzpnxtxxxzut
A Beauty and Joy Forever.
1st Premium.—Select a suitable pint
of ground, either level or slightly sloping
In the front, and set it to Mime nioe luwn
glass, blue grass makes a very pretty
nnd inexpensive grass for tlie lawn. Thru
placo walks where they are needed, these
may bo of sa«'«l stone, brick or cement,
ilie latter is very pretty and something
within the reach of every property owner.
Shade trees should not be neglected, they
are indispensable in the summer time, and
may be of maple, «sh or Columbia oak.
For evergreens one can have choice of
spruce, pine, Iir, etc., or some of each
specie, also place some sweet shrubs
where their fragrance can be admired by
all. Also lilac, palms, ferns, elephants-
ear, etc., are very pretty arranged near
the walks. Also trailing vines in high
\ases or trellises; beds of Ilowers in fancy
shape*, such as star, crescent, diamond,
etc., are beautiful if one is a lover of
Cowers. These may be of ever living
plants as tulips, bleeding hearts, etc., or
they may he ot seeds and bulbs planted
every spring. Some prefer flowers in n
plat to themselves.
The grass in the lawn should be clipped
eery week with the lawn mower, and
carefully raked. If the season be a dry
one the lawn- should be watered with the
hose. The lawn may be enclosed with
any lawn fencing desired, or it may have
n hedge of laurel or other hedge shrubbery preferred. If a hedge is used as
an enclosure it should be kept trimmed or
it will become something else than a thing
of .beauty.
A lawn of bluegrass with a nice enclosure
and shade trees placed with most artistic
arrangement, with nice walks and a pretty
view, is rory pretty and is preferred by
some to the fancy lawn above mentioned.
A  Reader.
A Beautiful Lawn.
2d Premium.—-The first step in making
a beautiful lawn is a careful preparation
of the ground. Crass needs a good soil,
and, the stom-.s and rubbish having been
removed, the ground should be enriched,
cultivated deeply, pulverized, and leveled. The leveling process requires the
exercise of considerable skill. A stout
cord stretched tightly from a stake at
one corner of the house to one at the edge
of the lawn anil a few inches above the
ground will aid the eye in detecting inequalities of the surface. When the
ground has l;e"tr made smooth a few feet
on each side it tbe cord, move the stakes
and repeat the process until the surface
has i-oen level'*! on all sides of the house.
It may be necessary to use a roller where
the ground is lumpy.
If the ground slopes away from one or
all sides of the" house the beauty of the
lawn will be enhanced rather than marred,
if the curve of the surface is not varies).
Even a very slight depression in the slope
will destroy the symmetry of the ronr.
Kentucky blue grass makes a go.il lawn
and thrive? on soil lhat is rich or poor,
inoist or dry. but the lawn- mixtures, lire-
pared by the sccds.nin, are generally the
most satisfactory seeds to use, different
li.ixtuj-PB being driven for soils that are
heavy or light, wet or dry. Sow about ono
quart of seed to a square rod as early in
the sp:ing as possible, and rake iu thoroughly. If the Foil is very clayey, cover
the surface witli a light coating of well-
decomposed compost, taking care not to
use anything that will seed the land with
v.ced. Sometimes a heavy rain will make ;
sad work on n newly planted lawn. When !
such  an   accident   happens,   it  is  best   to
ulovel the surface and  wait till the heat '
and  drought  of  summer  ure  past   In-fore
seeding again. ;
Unless the fall is very dry, good results
may be obtained from seeding in September,  bnt   the  tender grass  will  stand  the
winter   better   if   it   is   given   a   covering !
of leaves before the ground freezes.
softer the grass has become established,
a fertilizer will bo needed to stimulate
growth aud  produce  the  rich  green color
house to give the slope. The trend of
plowed up and thrown back toward the
the drainage should be away from the
lw.uso, and evenly on all sides. Kill in
all the depressions and beat down with
mauls to prevent further sinking in those
water holes. If dirt must be added let it
be of the richest, but if the lawn simply
needs leveling to the right proportions,
and the soil is poor, add bom.- fertilizer,
nnd stir in thickly to below where the
riots must search  for strength.
Well rot led manure is excellent for enriching the soil if it were not for the weed
mod to sow. This mixture combines
i lover u'liich helps give it a better stand
and shade at lirst, disappearing as the
stiouger gra^s takes up the space.
Don't cut loo often until a good mat of
loots is formed. Cutting too often when
j < ting, or i:i every dry weather, tends to
kill il out or weaken it.
Threo lawn tools are necessary, and
really the fourth, a hose.The throe are a
lawn mower, a spud, and a wire rako. The
lirst evory one knows tho uood of if the
lawn be kept smooth and velvety, the
spud takes woods out Lost of anything
■ ne oan improvise and the wire rako takes
up loaves anil out grass williout injuring
iho roots of tho grass as coarser rakes
may do.
And above all, remember, that while
grass mills baok fertility to the soil it does
not give baik eaoh so muoh as it takes
away, so don't forget the dressing of fertilizers this fall, and all other falls.
I. M. A.
A Field of Wheat on Farm of E. B. Morris,   Bloomingdale,   Indiana,   that   is   expected to yield 35   bushels per acre.
so much desired. Barn-yard manure is
objectionable, but commercial fertilizer
will answer the purpose. Itaw bone meal
or pulverized sheep manure are excellent
(.ir fall dressing.
The lawn    mower    should    be    stalled
as soon as the grass is
high enough to cut, ami the
cutting continued at frequent times during
Ihe growing season. Thin places must bo
rcseeded and weeds dug up by the roots.
When wator is at hand a liberal use of
the sprinkler will keep the lawn fresh and
green, a thing of beauty and a constant
jov, till the snow covers it from sight.
M. W.
The Making a of Lawn.
".d Premium.—It may be that one's yard
is so small that you could not possibly
speak of it as a lawn, and yet, with care,
you can make this bit of ground more noticeable for beauty tlian a neiglilior with
acres of door yard at his command, and
who neglects it.
In the first place the soil should be fertile.    Grass will not grow and continue a
beauty upon a barren, water washed soil.
Poor ground will not grow the lawn grass
of the kind that sets its roots wide, ami
its top thick, reminding one of dark green
plush.
j     In getting a lawn ready aud in shape
I for  a   thing  of  l-eauty,  if  the  ground  is
I bumpy  ami  uneven,  lower at the house,
I than farther out, it should be filled in at
I the house    with fertile    soil and    sloped
gradually     to meet     tho    higlier ground
i outside,     or     this     ground   he    <lug  or
seeds it carries to make future trouble.
This is why the commercial fertilizers aro
best for eitiiohing the soil when the lawn
is made, and for after yearly dressing to
koop fertility at par in the soil.
One <:in begin gelling tho lawn in shape
iir tho fall, but spring is best time to finish up, level up, and got the ground in mellow, shape for sowing the seeds.
It cannot be got too mellow or
(oo     rich. The   groat     trouble     with
fall sowing of seed on the lawn is its tendency to freeze out because it has not yet
matted under ground. But good stands
have been made in the fall where the grass
was kept damp and growing fast and
si long iK-fore the frost eauglil it. .\
small lawn is easier managed in- tho fall
than a large oni unless one havo extra
time to look after it.
The belter plan is lo st ir the soil bo-
fore sowing the seed. This allows it to
Wcoino slightly packed that the feet going over it do not leave depressions causing the grass to grow unevenly. If it seems
to pack down- to hard, go over it with a
fine tooth rake before sowing.
Of course, if the ground lie kept level
and smooth, all stones nnd stumps and old
roots must come out and the depressions
they have made must be watched and
filled   as  thoy  sink.
A fins- sward is often made in country
yards l.y simply sowing timothy or blue
glass seed taken from the chaff in the
mow. But what is called the I.awn Grass
mixture is best. You got this from seedsmen ind (ley can give you to the foot, if
ft cy are reliable, jit -1 how much you  will
No. V.*">, An?. 12.—(Jive your method of
making good cider vinegar, and tell how
to  put   np  fruit  butters.
No. III.'!, Aug. IS).—Kxplain how you
manage to have plenty of good fall pasture.
Premiums of $1, 75 cents and 50
cents are given for the best, secoml and
third best articles for the Experience He-
prir'mont each week. Manuscript should
bo sent direct to the Indiana Farmer Company arid should reach us one week before
date of  publication.
BU!   WHEAT  YIELDS.
Kditors Indiana  Farmer:
( wish to slate that I threshed 1!) acres
of Hybrid Prolific wheat whicli averaged
.'!(» oushels to the acre.
Boone Co. Edw.  Beeslev.
FAltort  ItislUina   Farmer:
I thrashed forty acres that produced
HiiO bushels of good wheat raised on
clovor sod, an average of !it}\_ bushels per
aire of: the  Perfection  wheat.
Parke Co. S.  M. Smith.
Ed. Yoiinl, (wo miles north of (ireon-
nosxl, threshed ."() acres of wheat tliaf
an raged '.','2 bushels to the aon-.
Oil  Talbert, near Morristown, thrashed
■IIK» bushels from 10 acres.
Ben Owens. Hush county, claims nn
a\cr:ige of ¥.',:'* bushols an acre, but we
.■> inst  know  llle number of acres.
;      W.  II   Bright, near ltoehester, .got :',7.r
i bushels   from   10 acres.
'.      Ths-  average  yield    near Clark's    Hii".,
Tippecanoe   oounty,   was   '„■,   bushels   per
, :t*TO.
Kush county reports excellent wheat
yields, and statos that the average yield
iu that county is above 25 bushels per
acre.
About the biggest yield of wheat comes
in a report from Elkhart county, where
100  bushels    woro  threshed     from    two
acres.
Many fields of wheat in Kosciusko
county have yielded 150 to 1.8 bushels per
aire, and farmers claim that the average
will g.i to 'JS to :!0 bushels fo rthe county.
Twenty to thirty bushels of wheat is
ihe reported yield of wheat in Noble
county, and some fields s*7i bushels per
acre.