The term "lawn," as generally understood, is applied to a grass-covered plot of ground, usually in the neighborhood of a dwelling or other building, kept smooth and clean by continuous care and close mowing. In more than one sense the lawn is an essential part of any well-kept estate; but its chief service is, together with its attendant trees and shrubs, as a setting for the more individual features it may surround.

The first matter to be considered in preparing a lawn is the grading. The contour should be such that no hollows allow the retention of water during spring"thaws;"yet no opportunity for erosion, due to excessive slope or concentrated drainage, should be allowed. It may be here suggested that a slightly concaved surface adds to the apparent extent of a plot - a point that frequently is taken advantage of in grading between a house and the street upon which it fronts when the actual distance is short. The matter of drainage must, however, receive careful consideration when this method is attempted.

Very rarely is under-draining necessary, except in unusually heavy or clayey soil; when employed, lines of three-inch tiles should be laid fifteen feet apart, and from two and one-half to three feet below the surface.

In uneven ground, when the leveling or lowering of the surface is necessary, the top-soil, if it is loam of any value, should be laid aside, and the subsoil removed to the required depth, after which the loam may be replaced and graded evenly. For a vigorous and permanent greensward, from eight to ten inches of loam are required. The latter should be enriched with an abundance of well-rotted stable manure applied at the rate of eight cords to the acre, which when spread evenly gives a depth of two or three inches. This should be thoroughly worked into the soil by plowing or spading, to a depth of eight inches or more; stones and coarse sods and weeds must be removed by harrowing or raking. It is a frequent objection that barn manure carries quantities of weed-seeds, but as a matter of fact, the weeds springing from this source are usually of small consequence, the greater number having been already in the soil.

The best season for sowing grass-seed is doubtless in early spring, but good results are obtained when the sowing is made in the fall, early enough so that the grass will make substantial growth before frost. It is well to edge walks, drives, bedding-spaces, and other portions exposed to injury with sods of firm texture, and of a quality that will blend later with the seeded growth. Excellent mixtures of lawn-grass seeds are supplied by reliable seed-dealers, and their advice can generally be relied upon in the selection of a mixture suitable for use in any particular location. As the proportion of non-germinating seeds is often considerable, even in the best mixtures, the quantity sown should be liberal, the usual amount being four bushels per acre, or one-quarter pound per hundred square feet.

The seed should be scattered evenly, and in sowing it is advisable to go over the ground twice, lengthwise, then crosswise. The work should never be attempted on a windy day; early in the morning is considered the best time of day. The soil should be moist, yet not wet enough to prevent the easy raking-in of the seed, and a smooth rolling immediately after sowing. The rolling should be done thoroughly by two or more applications of a moderately heavy iron roller. In a dry season, daily watering is beneficial. This should be done carefully and lightly, so as not to wash the seeds from the ground. After the first mowing, the rolling should be repeated once or twice; and frequent mowing will do much toward inducing a thick, velvety growth. Should the new grass be killed in spots during the first winter, the bare spaces should be resown liberally; depressions caused by the settling of newly-graded soil may be filled with finely-screened loam in which seeds have been thickly mixed. Another rolling should follow.

The care of lawns involves three things: the eradication of weeds, feeding, and mowing. For the first, various chemical weedkillers are found in the market; but their use is no more certain and consumes scarcely less time and labor than the old-fashioned method of uprooting the undesirable plants with an old knife or some suitable garden tool. One of the best ways of keeping down the weeds is to encourage the grass by generous treatment, as it is where the grass is thin and the soil is poor that the weeds grow most vigorously.

Yearly dressing with fertilizer of some kind is necessary to the best condition of any lawn. As a rule, commercial fertilizers do not give the permanent effect secured through using well-rotted manure. Pulverized sheep-manure, wood-ashes, bone-dust, or fine rich soil, or humus, may be used to advantage. The application should be made in early spring, so that spring rains will carry the plant-food well into the soil. As has already been said, watering, for the old lawn as well as for the new, should be done by some means that affords a fine spray of long duration, rather than by a deluge from a coarse nozzle.

Frequent mowing is essential to the well-being of any lawn. By it the growth of coarse seed-stalks is prevented, and the grass is kept smooth and of good texture. A carrier for catching the grass as it is cut by the mower is a great convenience, and, especially in the case of a new lawn, avoids the danger of uprooting the grass by raking too vigorously. The rolling action ofthe lawn mower is also beneficial.