292 THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



exempt from outrage of this kind, of which, perhaps, the most hideous 

 example is that of Euston Square. A high and ugly earth-bank 

 has been put all around the Square, so steep that even the cheap 

 nursery rubbish of the London squares Privet and Elder refuses 

 to grow upon it, and so in the summer days, instead of the grass 

 and tree-stems and cool shadows, a bank of dusty rubbish meets 

 the eye ! 



Another serious source of waste of the inexperienced in ground- 

 work is burying the top surface, the most precious, and in many cases 

 the result of ages of decay of turf and plants. In alluvial land and 

 light friable hill soils this mistake does not so much matter, but in 

 heavy land where there is a clay subsoil it is fatal. The first thing 

 in all groundwork is to save the top soil with the greatest care, for 

 the sake of using it again in its proper place ; and how to save it, so 

 that it may be available at the end of the work, is one of the most 

 essential things the good ground-worker has to think of. 



Trenches for the reception of pipes, drains, and foundations should 

 not be opened until the materials are at hand, as in wet weather 

 doing so often leads to the sides falling in and much needless 

 labour. The direction of walks, roads, or designs for beds, borders, 

 or gardens, should be carefully marked out and looked at from every 

 point of view before carrying them out, having regard to their use 

 and their relation to all things about them, and not merely to any 

 plan on paper. Attention to this will often save much labour in 

 groundwork. 



A cause of much waste of labour in moving soil is the usual 



way of treating mud after the cleansing of artificial ponds often 



a poor inheritance to leave to one's children. The 



Other causes of silting up with mud goes on for ever, and while 



waste. the mere expense of getting this out of the pond 



bed in any way is usually great, the cost is often 



increased through the idea that the stuff is of manurial value. This 



leads people frequently to heap it up on the banks to dry, then to 



liming it, and eventually to moving it on to the land, these various 



labours adding to the disfigurement of the foreground of beautiful 



ground often for a long time. Pond mud has very little manurial 



value generally, though it will differ to some extent according to the 



sort of soil the supply comes from. Usually, however, it has very 



slight value, and any labour bestowed upon it from that point of view 



is nearly always wasted. The best and simplest way is to put it 



direct on to some poor pasture near, or on to any ground where it 



may be got rid of with least labour to man or horse. Where the 



pond is ugly in outline and not essential either for its beauty in the 



home landscape or for its uses for fish or water store, it may often be 



