Photo 137. 



As one stepped from the porch he was in danger of rolling down the grade. That photo 

 was taken the first week in May. The next photo (141) was taken July 5th, about nine 

 weeks after. You can see there has been quite a transformation. A team was put to 

 work scraping in earth to fill out the front, to make the lawn proper wide enough to 

 show a contrast with the house and for the convenience of the occupants. This made a 

 very abrupt embankment and had to be sodded, but you will notice that there are no 

 sharp points, but the terrace rounds up and merges into the lawn. Had this house been 

 built 10 or 12 feet further back, no terrace would have been needed. 



Before you lay out the cellar be sure that the right proportion exists between the 

 front grounds and the building itself. For example, if the depth of your house is to be 

 50 feet, it should be no less distance from the sidewalk to the house. A greater depth of 

 lawn would look better. 



You never can apply any landscape art to offset the awkward appearance of a big 

 house in a small yard. It can only be excused in structures erected (in towns) for board- 

 ing houses, etc. There is a way to partially overcome the out-of-proportion front yard. 

 Glance again at photo 140. You see a (comparatively) big house on a little hillock. Now 

 look at the same house in photo 141. You see the heavy vines growing around the 

 porch; mark the effect, they hide the woodwork and become, substantially, to the eye 

 a part of the yard. The landscape artist understands these little points and adopts 

 " means to the end" to produce different effects. He has to study forms, sizes and 

 colors like a milliner would in fitting hats for ladies. The art is allied to floriculture,, 

 and, like bouquet-making, there are no set rules naturalness is the thing to be studied. 

 There are thousands of people who have natural taste and adaptation for this charming- 

 vocation, who never have taken the first step in the way of application. Develop your- 

 selves; let us have more charming landscape. One of the most deplorable things is the 

 waste of the best soil. Usually the house is "let" by contract. Stake out the cellar. 

 Bring on the teams ! Scoop out the soil ! Cover it up with clay, gravel, sand or any- 

 thing that comes in the way! Drag this over, work it down, rake it off, scatter in the 

 grass seed, plant the trees, shrubs, flowers, etc., we'll soon have a yard. Of course, you 

 will; you'll have a yard and nothing in it ! Don't curse the seedman because the grass 

 seed wasn't good; don't find fault with Providence because everything is dying on your 

 hands. Make conditions favorable and all will come out right. See that every bit of 

 soil is taken care of. Fill all depressions with stones, rubbish, sand, brick-bats, gravel, 

 anything, in fact, that will not settle. Put on the top soil; get your grade pretty near 

 where you want it, and then, well, don't be in a hurry ! If it is the fall of the year, let 

 your lawn lay over till spring, then work it over as soon as dry enough. You will now 

 accomplish two things, i. e., first, you fill up all depressions, and, second, you will destroy 

 hundreds of thousands of weeds just as they are germinating. Early spring sowing of 

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