148 LANDSCAPE-GARDENING 



removal of all the good top soil from the site of the 

 house and those portions of its surroundings which 

 would be covered in the final grade. This soil 

 should be put in one or more piles out of the way of 

 building operations, yet conveniently near so that 

 it can be easily replaced about the house after its 

 completion. The lines of the finished grade should 

 flow naturally into each other in every direction 

 without sharp angles. Projecting rock ledges or 

 bowlders are unobjectionable. They often make 

 the grounds more beautiful and sometimes fur- 

 nish admirable places for ferns, vines, mosses, 

 lichens, or other plants. When the grading is done, 

 the usual procedure is to sow lawn seed. There 

 is hardly anything more beautiful than a well- 

 kept, gently rolling lawn. The dew upon it in the 

 morning, the play of sunlight on it, and its yield- 

 ing to the pressure of one's foot, are delightful. Yet 

 it is sometimes advisable to use other plants than 

 grass and white clover for a ground cover. To 

 mention but a few, one might list trailing juniper, 

 horizontal cotoneaster, bearberry, spurge, par- 

 tridge-berry, the low forms of yew, myrtle, violets, 

 Virginia creeper, wild grapes, lily-of-the-valley, vir- 

 gin's bower, wintergreen, wandering Jew, iris, and 



