-^ Jt?e (srardei) ar)d L^^OQ. N~ 



LAYING OUT HOME GROUNDS. 



HIS higher practice of the profession of landscape gardening 

 should begin with the selection of the site upon which the 

 home is to be located, as the landscape gardener, in consul- 

 tation with his client, not only learns his wishes concerning 

 the form and location of the house, but also discovers his 

 tastes and requirements respecting the whole estate, and 

 can wisely determine the amount of land necessary and the 

 respective advantages and disadvantages of different sites in the same neigh- 

 borhood, thus by his trained judgment saving his client from much needless 

 expense — and often disappointment — in the completed place. In most towns 

 the pieces of land combining the greatest possibilities for the making of an 

 original, interesting and often unique place are very likely the longest neglected, 

 because their picturesque natural advantages, or irregular surface, will not lend 

 themselves readily to the smoothing out process which most land undergoes 

 under treatment by the real estate agent and land surveyor and the unskilled pro- 

 fessor of landscape gardening. Many such sites are to be found within easy 

 reach of railway stations and at low valuation. 



In the selection of land healthfulness should be one of the first considera- 

 ations. Well drained land, or that which can be well drained, preferably a por- 

 ous, sandy or gravelly soil, should be chosen, (iood sanitary conditions in the 

 neighborhood are as important as good drainage. If in a thickly settled dis- 

 strict, the ground may be saturated from leaking cess-pools. Rubbish collec- 

 tions, barnyards, sink-drains or cess pools should be investigated, and the purity 

 of the water supply should be assured. A pleasing outlook is a desirable fea- 

 ture. A steep slope toward or away from the road is expensive to build upon, 

 but may be sightly and cool in the summer, and warm in the winter if on the 

 right side of the hill. A gentle slope either toward or from the road may, if 

 properly managed, prove very eligible. Ledges, boulders, well-grown native trees 

 or groups of them give character to an estate. 



The success of a new place depends much upon the cordial co-operation of the 

 house architect with the landscape architect ; much depends upon the proper 

 fitting of the house to the grounds — in character, outline and elevation — by the 

 former, and proper arrangement of roads, walks and vegetation with reference to 

 the house, by the latter. 



The character of the place having been determined, the location of the 

 house and arrangement of the grounds are next to ba considered. The house 

 will be located with reference to views, exposure, the sub-division of the grounds, 

 the surrounding buildings and the approaches, all which points should be studied 

 before the house site can be determined. 



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