1338 Rural School Leaflet 



but the lumber should be sawed in the proper sizes so it may be put to- 

 gether easily. The boxes should be about ten inches wide, eight inches 

 deep, and of any length desired. They should be so placed that the top 

 of the box will come about even with the window sill. After the boxes 

 are in place, they should be painted a shade of green that will harmonize 

 with the foliage of the plants. These boxes should be the winter gardens. 

 Similar boxes may be placed outside the windows, and if filled with small 

 hemlock and pine trees, the winter aspect will be a cheery one. 



A few well-berried plants of Japanese barberries or the native black 

 alder {Ilex verticillaia) , add to the attractiveness of the winter outdoor 

 window boxes, and between them may be planted the evergreen shield 

 fern {Aspidium marginale) and the so-called Christmas feni {Polysiichum 

 acrostichoides) . 



The soil for the inside boxes should be rich; a medium light garden 

 soil well enriched with one-third thoroughly rotted cow manure, makes 

 an excellent soil. There should be some stones in the bottom of the boxes 

 to insure perfect drainage. After the soil and the manure are well mixed, 

 the boxes should be filled with the compost. Some of the inside boxes 

 may be used for planting seeds, and some for larger plants propagated 

 by cuttings. One difficulty in satisfactorily growing seedlings in window 

 boxes is that the seed is sown too thickly and too many seedlings develop, 

 so that the resulting plants are weak and deficient in flowers. If possible, 

 it is best to transplant the seedlings once or even twice, so that strong, 

 healthy plants may result. 



For the seed boxes it would be well to have a border of some estabhshed 

 vine to give a decorative setting for the seedlings. In almost any locaHty 

 it is possible to get considerable inch plant, or wandering jew {Trades- 

 cantia fluminensis) , and this may be readily rooted by placing it for a 

 week or two in glass jars filled with water. It is interesting for the 

 children to watch the roots develop from the nodes of the stem. This 

 may furnish material for a lesson on the formation of roots from various 

 parts of the stem. Seeds of climbing nasturtiums may also be inserted 

 in the soil along the borders of the boxes to form traiHng vines. Another 

 attractive combination may be made by sowing a border of trailing sweet 

 alyssum, alternating here and there by trailing lobelia. The border of 

 blue and white flowers is very eflfective. Other seeds that may be started 

 in the boxes and that will later give attractive flowering plants, are 

 ageratum, bachelor's-button, dwarf nasturtiums, African golden daisy, 

 California poppy, marigolds, forget-me-nots, petunias, scarlet sage {Sal- 

 via splendens), butterfly flower (Schizanthus) , stocks, and verbenas. It 

 takes many of these a long time to germinate, develop, and flower; there- 

 fore unless it is desired to demonstrate to the children the successive 



