Zoysia Grass

 

When I was twelve years old (in 1960) I began working for Miss Vogel in Churchville as her gardener.  Well, actually, I just did what Miss Vogel told me to do … in her garden.  She had the most luscious grass that I had ever set foot on!  It was zoysia and grew from plugs that she had bought years earlier.  Miss Vogel also had gorgeous irises in many colors and variations.  Each fall, I had to dig up the iris bulbs, label them, and store them in her cool basement.  Then in the early spring, I replanted the irises in preparation for the garden club spring pilgrimage.  Often, Miss Vogel would acquire new bulbs, and she would expand a bed to accommodate the new irises.  I would dig up the zoysia sod and set it aside to be used in other areas.  One day, she said to throw a shovelful of zoysia sod away, so I asked her if I could take it home for my yard.  She was happy to oblige.  So that afternoon, I took the sod home with me when my mother picked me up from work.  I asked my dad where I could plant the sod, and he said to put it anywhere, so I dug up some crabgrass in the front yard and replaced it with my zoysia shovelful.  By the next summer, the zoysia had spread out three feet and was a luscious, rich carpet.  My dad bought a plugger that summer and plugged the zoysia patch trading zoysia plugs for crabgrass plugs at various places in the front yard.  The following spring, those plugs had spread out and he repeated the process.  It took ten years, but the zoysia grass totally took over our front yard and was beautiful!  Hey, good habits are just like that zoysia grass.  Good habits start small, but develop into good character.  And good character develops into a life-long reputation.  Paul said in Galatians 6:7-9, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”