202 ROCK GARDENS 



factors, and, except in very exceptional cases, 

 not liable to much variation. 



But very different is the case in landscape 

 gardening, for difficulties may arise, such as 

 finding unexpected rocks or a very hard stratum 

 of subsoil, etc., which could not have been fore- 

 seen or guarded against when the work was 

 commenced. So any estimate made must be 

 more or less approximate, and it is wise to 

 leave a good margin. 



In the case of a rock garden much will 

 depend on whether it is natural or artificial ; 

 if the former, on whether much clearing has 

 to be done to expose the rock, and on what 

 facilities there are for making and draining 

 the necessary pockets. The texture of the 

 rock, whether hard or soft, will also affect 

 the estimate. In the artificial garden there 

 are even more points to consider : if the 

 ground has to be cleared from scrub, when it 

 will cost less than if there are also trees to 

 be removed ; if it is necessary to excavate 

 for the site, and, if so, to what extent ; 

 also, what the facilities are for getting rocks, 

 sand, water, and many other things. 



