HIr - Desert Magazine of the Southwest

it is as showy as—any prima donna.
Like all legumes it manufactures nitrogen
which makes it especially good as
a winter nurse crop with dichondra or
lippia.
Lippia is similar to dichondra but
has not its resistance to cold. It makes
a pretty summer lawn with its small
leaves and very small lilac colored
flowers. As it is propagated only by
runners, it covers slowly and welcomes
overseeding for winter with clover or
rye.
The summer lawn that most stubbornly
resists overseeding is the allprevailing
bermuda.
At the end of its first summer it
may be sparse enough to overseed as
is, or with a mere surface scratching.
But eventually a good bermuda lawn
develops a turf so dense that a thorough
"scalping" and thinning-out must
be done before overseeding—a job requiring
professional skill and equipment.
This may be more beneficial than
harmful to the bermuda and an application
of manure at this time may
benefit it as well as the winter grass,
while resultant weeds should perish by
frost-bite.
Another toughie to overseed is St.
Augustine grass. A neighbor of ours
has a lawn of it and it is the greenestgreen
grass I have ever seen. It greens
up a little earlier in spring than bermuda
and stays green a little longer—
through a light frost or two.
This "carpet grass" as it is sometimes
called, has coarse, flat leaves
that appear to be actually woven over
the ground to make a thick, springy
carpet. As it must be planted by sprigs
it takes time—a year or two—for its
weaving, during which it may be overseeded
in autumn.
Through our neighbor's generosity
we are trying out some sprigs on the
badminton court—where it will have
to be tough indeed to survive.
On a rocky terrace above the court
I have a pet project of my own—a
ground cover of verbenas, the little
purple, straggling strays that come up
in lawns and sometimes make a nuisance
of themselves. When they started
coming up there on the terrace I was
interested to see what water and fertilizer
could do for them. What they
did for me was to take over the terrace
and much of the ground below
and above it—to become something of
a showpiece, except during a few weeks
in winter when they are not in bloom.
My husband likes them especially.
He says, "The more verbenas the less
grass to mow."
$2400
Paul B. Witmer, manager of the Department of Interior's Los Angeles
office of the Bureau of Land Management, warned prospective jackrabbit
homesteaders to investigate government requirements that must be met
before land ownership can be obtained, and the subsequent cost of these
requirements.
Although filing fee for a five-acre tract is only $10 and the rental $15,
in order to own a small tract the homesteader should be prepared to spend
a minimum of around $2461, Witmer said. He derives that figure from the
following expenses:
Filing and rental fee $ 25.00
Cabin (the law requires a minimum of 192 square feet which
is only big enough for sleeping quarters. Construction cost
will run roughly $8.00 per square foot) 1536.00
Water tank, approximately 400.00
Cesspool 250.00
Roads, approximately 50.00
Survey, approximately 50.00
Purchase price of land (between $150 and $175 per tract)_.. 150.00
Total, not including possible fees to professional locators that
vary from $10 to $300 $2461.00
Rm Pictures Ate Wanted...
Autumn days are approaching—days when the desert landscape
will be free from the shimmering haze of July and August—days when
the crisp tinge of the morning air will be an invitation to the camera
enthusiast to venture forth to discover new subjects for the lense and
tripod. Readers of Desert Magazine always like to share in the enjoyment
of unusual pictures of the desert terrain, its people, wildlife, sunsets,
hidden canyons and rare botanical specimens. In order that the
best of these photographs may be available for Desert's pages, two
prizes are offered each month for the best Pictures-of-the-Month submitted
to the editorial staff.
Entries for the September contest must be sent to the Desert Magazine
office. Palm Desert, California, postmarked not later than September
18, Winning prints will appear in the November issue. Pictures
which arrive too late for one contest are held over for the next month.
First prize is $10; second prize, $5. For non-winning pictures accepted
for publication $3 each will be paid.
HERE ARE THE RULES
1—Prints for monthly contests must be black and white, 5x7 or larger, printed
on glossy paper.
2—Each photograph submitted should be fully labeled as to subject, time and
place. Also technical data: camera, shutter speed, hour of day. etc.
3—PRINTS WILL BE RETURNED WHEN RETURN POSTAGE IS ENCLOSED.
4—All entries must be in the Desert Magazine office by the 20th of the contest
month.
5—Contests are open to both amateur and professional photographers. Desert
Magazine requires first publication rights only of prize winning pictures.
6—Time and place of photograph are immaterial, except that it must be from the
desert Southwest.
7—Judges will be selected from Desert's editorial staff, and awards will be made
immediately after the close of the contest each month.
Address All Entries to Photo Editor
T>e&ent 7?taf