Needless to say, landscaping can be a never-ending adventure, a pastime that is as gratifying as it is beautifying, for the creation and care of flowers and trees, vines and shrubs, lawns and fences, brings luxury to the home, happiness to the family, and pleasure to all who behold the beauty of a house.

Designing and Planning

For the most attractive and beneficial use of your grounds, you will want to include in your plans most of the features outlined in this chapter. Such essentials as a good lawn, thriving shade trees and paths and walks are usually taken for granted, yet often they are the most difficult to acquire, and may absorb a major part of your initial effort and budget. On the other hand, such a project as an outdoor living room, with its cooking and entertaining facilities, may have been overlooked in the past because it sounded too difficult to achieve. And yet such seemingly difficult features can add tremendously to your enjoyment and may, depending on what type you choose, be obtained with relatively little effort and cost!

Trees - For Shade and Beauty

Perhaps if any one feature can be singled out as basic to successful landscaping, it is the presence of fine trees. The unfortunate trend of developmental builders in cutting down trees in a wholesale manner, and the growing use of treeless fields for new building, has focused attention on the property owner who must begin with nothing when it comes to trees. Architects agree that a single shade tree, even of medium height, can make a very great difference in the comfort and livability of a house It is amazing to discover what a tree can do for a house. A tree in leaf, for example, can reduce noises from the street.

A tree tall enough to throw shade over the roof can materially reduce heat in summer. Trees can lessen the amount of dust around a house and provide protection from winds. But there are also the many aesthetic considerations. There are the things that shrubs and trees can do to improve the looks of your house itself. Properly situated, they can sharply alter the lines of your house. They can give a small house dignity; appear to reduce the ungainly height of a tall house; soften the lines of a new house and provide welcome contrasts in color and texture.

Needless to say, landscaping can be a never-ending adventure, a pastime that is as gratifying as it is beautifying, for the creation and care of flowers and trees, vines and shrubs, lawns and

fences, brings luxury to the home, happiness to the family, and pleasure to all who behold the beauty of a "well-dressed" house.

Designing and Planning

For the most attractive and beneficial use of your grounds, you will want to include in your plans most of the features outlined in this chapter. Such essentials as a good lawn, thriving shade trees and paths and walks are usually taken for granted, yet often they are the most difficult to acquire, and may absorb a major part of your initial effort and budget. On the other hand, such a project as an outdoor living room, with its cooking and entertaining facilities, may have been overlooked in the past because it sounded too difficult to achieve. And yet such seemingly difficult features can add tremendously to your enjoyment and may, depending on what type you choose, be obtained with relatively little effort and cost!

Trees - For Shade and Beauty

Perhaps if any one feature can be singled out as basic to successful landscaping, it is the presence of fine trees. The unfortunate trend of developmental builders in cutting down trees in a wholesale manner, and the growing use of treeless fields for new building, has focused attention on the property owner who must begin with nothing when it comes to trees. Architects agree that a single shade tree, even of medium height, can make a very great difference in the comfort and livability of a house It is amazing to discover what a tree can do for a house. A tree in leaf, for example, can reduce noises from the street.

A tree tall enough to throw shade over the roof can materially reduce heat in summer. Trees can lessen the amount of dust around a house and provide protection from winds. But there are also the many esthetic considerations. There are the things that shrubs and trees can do to improve the looks of your house itself. Properly situated, they can sharply alter the lines of your house. They can give a small house dignity; appear to reduce the ungainly height of a tall house; soften the lines of a new house and provide welcome contrasts in color and texture.