82 THE NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [ 3 : 3 - mar., 1907 



largest number of crops? Which is the most rapid grower? 

 Which are not true grasses? 



The United States is the greatest sugar-consuming country 

 in the world, every person in the country using, on the average, 

 seventy pounds a year. Our greatest import is sugar. The 

 sugar which we consume is very largely cane sugar, which is 

 considered the best sugar. But our beet sugar industry is grad- 

 ually increasing, especially in California, Nebraska, Utah and 

 Michigan. Two-thirds of the world's sugar product is beet 

 sugar. 



Sugar beets should be a product of the school-garden, also 

 one of the common varieties grown for table use. The growth 

 of each should be studied, likenesses and differences noted, the 

 matured roots compared, especially in saccharine qualities. 



Sorghum being a sugar-producing plant, also a member of 

 the same family of which sugar-cane is a member, its cultiva- 

 tion would be of marked interest to the pupils. 



Flax is one of the most important of textile fiber plants. 

 It has a very wide range, thriving in the dry summers of Cali- 

 fornia and in the moist regions of the Mississippi Valley. It 

 grows well in the colder parts of Europe and equally well in 

 tropical Asia. Although almost every American citizen wears 

 linen garments, only a small quantity of flax is grown in the 

 United Sates, and that quantity is grown for the seed which is 

 manufactured into linseed oil. 



Because of the importance of the flax in contributing to our 

 clothing material as well as to the arts, it should be produced 

 in the school-garden. Its beautiful blue flower gratifies the 

 sense of beauty. Children should make brush drawings of the 

 plant in flower and leaf. A firm, rich soil is the chief requisite 

 for flax growth. 



The true hemp of commerce (Cannabis sativa ) is grown in 

 nearly every country of North America, Europe and Asia. The 

 prepared hemp is mainly used in the manufacture of wrapping- 

 twine, cordage and coarse canvas. The hemp is a stately plant, 

 growing three feet or more in height, and commands attention 

 when growing. Hemp seed forms a part of the food of caged 

 seed-eating birds. 



