DAVIS] 



SCHOOL-GARDENS 89 



bearing on the educational problem relating to agriculture in our State. 

 The present agricultural educational system, i. e., experiment station, 

 agricultural college, and farmer's institute, is doing its part. Second- 

 ary education in agriculture, so far as it has had a chance, is doing its 

 share. But the part of our system that reaches the masses is doing 

 practically nothing in this direction. It is to the elementary or com- 

 mon schools that we must look for the next important contribution 

 toward the solution of the problem. 



Elementary agriculture as a school subject will probably fail wher- 

 ever it is taught from books, and the average teacher knows no other 

 way of developing a subject. The country school-garden means 

 simply a part of the school equipment for bringing the child face to 

 face with some of the great fundamental facts relative to plant growth. 

 These facts present themselves as interesting exercises to be worked 

 out by the child's own efforts. I would have the children have a 

 part in the solution of some of the problems that vitally concern the 

 people of our state. The energy of a few men and the expenditure of 

 $10,000 represents the present effort to improve the wheat. Why 

 not direct the energy of the children in the wheat growing districts 

 to the problem of selection of seed wheat ? The Canadian school 

 children undertook to improve the seed of wheat and oats, and in 

 three years the gain was 27 per cent for wheat and 28 per cent for 

 oats. It is not exaggeration to say that the children forced their 

 fathers to begin systematic and intelligent effort to improve their seed 

 under direction of Superintendent of Agriculture Robertson. Indiana 

 has recently had a phenomenal yield of corn. The children are 

 going to make it possible for a still greater yield in the future. In 

 many corn raising counties corn contests are being held by the 

 children. By this means the quality of seed will surely be raised, and 

 better than this an appreciation of careful seed selection will be 

 aroused as never before. Local problems, such as testing the soil 

 as to its adaptation for culture of sugar beets, statistical studies of fun- 

 gus diseases of oats,, and the like have been worked out in many 

 places. 



My idea of school-gardens for California children in the coun- 

 try is that the gardens should be centers for just such work. Every 

 boy may become in a small way a Burbank. One of the secrets of 

 Mr. Burbank's success is the great number of plants experimented 

 upon. What might 100,000 children do? Out of the sum total it is 

 not too much to expect that something new and useful might result 



