RiRAL School Leaflet 1313 



spring beauty? Where was it growing? What plant associates did it 

 have? 



It is not advisable to require young children to make a very detailed 

 observation of plants. A broad, wholesome field knowledge will probably 

 be most satisfactory for the elementary grades. The boys and girls should 

 be able to make a mental picture, at any time, of a large ntmiber of the 

 common plants in the country round. They should be able to give the 

 approximate height, the habit of growth, the kind of leaf (whether simple 

 or compound), perhaps the margin of the leaf, the color of the blossoms, 

 the shape of the corolla (whether regular or irregular), and some of the 

 larger likenesses of each plant to one or more plants of the same kin. 

 If the teacher is a good botanist and is interested in the subject, she may 

 encourage the children to more intensive work; but good general observa- 

 tion and happy, wholesome interest will probably make the best foun- 

 dation for scientific study in the secondary schools and the universities. 



Before beginning the work on the recognition of plants for 1915-1916, 

 it would be well for the teachers to read the following article. In the 

 autumn the children enjoy the study of leaves, and much can be learned 

 as to shapes, margins, and the like. 



HELPS IN THE STUDY OF PLANTS 



E. L. Palmer 



When one wishes to learn the name of any flower that he may happen 

 to pick up, he usually does one of two things : either he asks some person 

 to name it for him, or he attempts to look it up for himself in a book. 

 There are two kinds of books on plants, the popular and the scientific. 

 The former is usually the more convenient for general work, but as a rule 

 the scientific book is the more accurate. The difficulty with scientific 

 books is that to most persons they are unintelligible because of the terms 

 used in describing the parts of the plant. It is hoped that this article 

 will explain clearly the meaning of some of the more common terms used. 



In the first place, the parts of a flower should be learned. The parts 

 of flowers are arranged in groups, usually four. In the trillium, for example, 

 there is on the outside a set of three green, leaflike structures. Each 

 of these is known as a sepal, and the three together make up what is known 

 as the calyx. In most flowers the calyx is green. Within the calyx there 

 is a second set of structures, which are either white or conspicuously colored. 

 This set of structures is known as the corolla, and the separate parts are 

 the petals. The corolla and the calyx constitute what is known as the 

 floral envelope, which is usually made up of structures that are more or 

 less leaflike. The floral envelope is not really essential in the production 

 of seeds. 



83 



