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Where old trees abound it is difficult to prepare or keep a good lawn 

 or introduce new sbrubs or flowers. The roots of the trees prevent 

 thorough renovation of the soil and the shade of their branches inter- 

 feres with the growth of plants. There is a steady antagonism between 

 the old and the new, both with regard to individual growth and laud- 

 scape effect, until either the one or the other predominates. It is no 

 matter of doubt or uncertainty, but a settled question with all who have 

 any experience in remodeling or adapting old woods or groves to modern 

 improvements, that it is measurably better to commence on a treeless, 

 naked field ; as a judicious selection and intermixture of fast-growing 

 trees, properly planted in good soil, will in a few years serve all useful 

 purposes, produce such effects as are contemplated, and give far more 

 satisfaction than can be derived from the accidental position and growth 

 of natural forests, at least so far as relates to improvements in the im- 

 mediate vicinity of a rural residence. 



PLAN OF IMPROVEMENTS. 



The grounds being secured and the site fixed upon for the house, the 

 next step is to prepare a well-defined working plan for contemplated 

 improvements, and this is of equal importance whether the grounds 

 are extensive or quite limited. To strike out the rude and simple out- 

 lines of an arrangement for the various accessories and conveniences 

 of a country residence requires a mind thoroughly imbued with the 

 principles of taste and conversant with the application of art to the 

 development of beauty ; and, although we admit that every individual 

 best knows what will meet his ideas of comfort and convenience in the 

 abstract, there are few who can tell all the details or satisfactorily in- 

 troduce and fit all the disjointed parts so as to produce a complete 

 whole. 



As it is wisdom on the part of those who are about building a house 

 to enlist the services of a competent architect, so it is essential to con- 

 sult with a landscape artist in the preparation of a plan for the improve- 

 ment of the grounds ; as to what trees to plant and where to plant 

 them ; the proper introduction and construction of roads and walks ; 

 locating and erecting barns, stables, glass houses, and other buildings; 

 selecting and preparing the soil for vegetable and fruit gardens; making 

 lawns, and the numerous details that are involved in perfecting all the 

 indispensable, useful, and ornamental adjuncts to a suburban house and 

 grounds. 



All plans should be definite and simple as possible, and not over- 

 loaded with mechanical embellishments, as an excess in this respect 

 generally indicates a deficiency in more important particulars. They 

 should be accompanied with ample references, wnere each tree and the 

 most important shrubs should be distinctly named and referred to 

 numbers on the plan. Intelligible reasons should be given for every- 

 thing proposed, both with reference to immediate and to future effect, 



