cover image The Lawn Bible: How to Keep It Green, Groomed, and Growing Every Season of the Year

The Lawn Bible: How to Keep It Green, Groomed, and Growing Every Season of the Year

David R. Mellor. Hyperion Books, $16.95 (288pp) ISBN 978-0-7868-8842-9

Mellor, the director of grounds at Fenway Park and a sports turf field consultant, knows his lawns. A self-professed ""lawnatic,"" Muller holds that beautiful green grass is the stuff of memory (remember ""that first $5 you earned cutting someone else's lawn""?), the secret to prime curb appeal and even a key to getting in touch with our ""agrarian roots."" In his comprehensive illustrated guide, he describes the different types of grasses (creeping bentgrass is good for putting greens, while Kentucky bluegrass is a suburban lawn classic), shows homeowners how to determine their soil type (try the ""Squish Test""), offers tips for maintenance (mow high during droughts) and even includes directions and diagrams for different mowing patterns (""Your lawn is your canvas""). His section on lawn pests features drawings of the insects that plague lawn owners and lists ways to get rid of them, from the ""beneficial nematodes"" that prey on pest larvae to insecticidal soaps to chemical pesticides. For those who take their lawns very, very seriously, there's a gold mine of information in here, all clearly organized and thoughtfully presented. (Apr.)