EXECUTION OF SOME OF THE LANDSCAPE FEATURES 67 



foot or two on all sides, and tile drains are laid about the base 

 of the well, as shown in the diagram at the right. A grating to 

 cover a well is also shown. It is often possible to make a slop- 

 ing bank just above the tree, and to allow the ground to fall 

 away from the roots on the lower side, so that there is no well 

 or hole ; but this is practicable only when the land below the 

 tree is considerably lower than that above it. 



If much of the surface is to be removed, the good top earth 

 should be saved, and placed back on the area, in which to sow 

 the grass seed and to make the plantings. This top soil may be 

 piled at one side out of the way while the grading is proceeding. 



Walks and drives. 



So far as the picture in the landscape is concerned, walks and 

 drives are blemishes. Since they are necessary, however, 

 they must form a part of the landscape design. They should 

 be as few as possible, not only because they interfere with the 

 artistic composition, but also because they are expensive to 

 make and to maintain. 



Most places have too many, rather than too few, walks and 

 drives. Small city areas rarely need a driveway entrance, 

 not even to the back door. The back yard in Fig. 39 illus- 

 trates this point. The distance from the house to the street 

 on the back is about ninety feet, yet there is no driveway in the 

 place. The coal and provisions are carried in; and, although 

 the deliverymen may complain at first, they very soon accept 

 the inevitable. It is not worth the while to maintain a drive 

 in such a place for the convenience of truckmen and grocers. 

 Neither is it often necessary to have a drive in the front yard 

 if the house is within seventy-five or one hundred feet of the 

 street. When a drive is necessary, it should enter, if possible, 

 at the side of the residence, and not make a circle in the front 

 lawn. This remark may not apply to areas of a half acre or 

 more. 



