96 NATURE STUDY RFJ^IEW [9 ;4— April. 1913 



DIVISION OF GARDEN SPACE. 



It seemed advisable to have quite a large general garden, 

 so half the space was used for that purpose. Each room in the 

 building, including the kindergarten, was assigned a portion of 

 this space about fifteen by twenty feet. Plans for their gardens 

 were made by the children as a part of their regular work, the 

 work including problems in arithmetic, drawing, language and 

 spelling. After deciding what they would plant they were taken 

 out-of-doors where they spaded, laid out and planted their gar- 

 dens working as a room. The large boys with the janitor's help 

 also spaded the rest of the ground, measured and laid out the 

 beds with paths between. At first the beds were elevated, but 

 we found it much harder to keep them well watered. Last sum- 

 mer we had them nearly level with the paths which proved more 

 satisfactory. About a fourth of the space was given to children 

 for individual gardening. The second summer we had sixty 

 varieties of flowers and sixteen kinds of vegetables. 



TRANSPLANTING. 



We have had good success planting the seeds out-of-doors 

 and then transplanting later. This last spring as the season was 

 so late much of this had to be done after school closed. Many 

 times I went out to school where I was always joined by ten 

 or fifteen children and sometimes some of the teachers also 

 assisted in the work. They were greatly interested and helped 

 to stimulate the interest of the children. 



To avoid transplanting after school closes we have had a 

 small cold frame about 4 by \'l feet built at the rear of the 

 garden, where we can raise seedlings that will be ready to trans- 

 plant as soon as it is warm enough in the spring. These can be 

 planted abcjut the loth of ]\Iarch. If this proves feasible we 

 shall build more of them next year. 



VARIETIES OF FLOWERS. 



Last summer we raised a great manv hardv perennial plants 

 from seeds, such as sweet Williams, oriental poppies, lychnis, 

 anchusa, etc. These made fine young plants that were carefully 

 protected last fall. Many of them that we raised from a ten 

 cent package of seeds would bring fifteen or twenty cents apiece 

 at the florist's. We shall change the plan of our general garden 

 greatly this spring, as we have so many of these perennial plants 

 to use. When the men are hauling away dead leaves in the fall 

 if you can secure a load or two, the\- make an ideal covering for 

 vour flower beds. We did this. 



