There's magic in a clover lawn. You can carefully pick the flowers and tie them together to create a tiara fit for a queen and then you are suddenly the Queen of the Garden. And all the garden fairies will gather round to grant you your fondest wishes and dreams. You can sit for hours staring at the three-leaf clovers until magically a four-leaf clover will appear before your very eyes. With that four-leaf clover you will have the most marvelous day, filled with all kinds of good luck. … [Read more...] about There’s magic in a clover lawn
lawns
Ode to Lawn Flowers
Chionodoxa I'm quite pleased with how the Chionodoxa have begun to flower in the lawn just as the Crocus are beginning to fade. I like them so much I finally learned how to pronounce the name Chionodoxa - "key-own-a-dox-ah". Or glory of the snow, if you prefer, but there is no snow around here so it seems to be a rather odd common name. Key-own-a-dox-ah. Most of what I planted last fall are Chionodoxa gigantea, I think. Maybe. I'm already poised to order more to plant this coming … [Read more...] about Ode to Lawn Flowers
And the lawn began to bloom
For the joy of that first moment when I stepped out the back door and saw all the crocuses blooming in the lawn, it was worth it. It was worth spending hours planting all those crocus bulbs last fall, and the two falls before that. It was worth enduring the cold, wind, ice, and snow of winter, including the last snow just ten days ago that covered the back lawn with six inches of snow. It was worth it. I thought at first only a few crocus blooms were open, but as I looked across the lawn, I … [Read more...] about And the lawn began to bloom
Oh give me a lawn…
"Oh give me a lawn Where the bees roam along And the rabbits have plenty to eat." Such a lawn will surely have clover in it. Lean in and let me tell you a secret about my lawn. I bought a bag of seeds for dutch white clover and sowed the seeds around my back lawn earlier in the spring. I'm not sure how well I timed my sowing but as I mow now I see little spots of clover coming up all over. Some of the clover seed must have germinated. I'd like to convince others to add clover back into their … [Read more...] about Oh give me a lawn…
Welcome Back, Lawn
Lawn on October 7 Drought? We had a drought? We had a record setting drought? This summer? You're kidding, right? It sure doesn't look like there was a drought in my garden. The lawn is green, the roses are blooming again. And it has been raining, quite a bit. The lawn was an awful khaki tan color toward the end of the drought, and it had that funny smell that lawns have when they are dormant due to lack of rain in the summertime. Lawn on July 24 But the lawn came … [Read more...] about Welcome Back, Lawn
Planting and Care of Lawns in 1931
I now have a copy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farmers' Bulletin No. 1677. Yes, that one. No. 1-6-7-7. "Planting and Care of Lawns". Published in 1931, updated in 1935. I now know the truth. I know that in 1931, when this booklet was originally published, "A beautiful green lawn is the ambition of most home owners... but few are willing to expend the effort necessary for a successful lawn." Not much has changed in homeowner's attitudes in the past 80 years. Too many … [Read more...] about Planting and Care of Lawns in 1931
