HORTICULTURE — A GREAT GREEN CARPET 423 



Horticulture is not restricted to professional horticulturists. There were 

 stars before there was astronomy, and there were plants before there were 

 professional horticulturists. 



THE SCIENCE, OR BIOLOGICAL, SIDE OF HORTICULTURE 



Over a period of generations many individuals have developed an under- 

 standing of plants and how they grow, which is as though they had become a 

 part of the plant and were able to thread their way in and about it as easily 

 and with as much understanding as they would their own homes. Some peo- 

 ple have dubbed this "experience," "common sense," or the "green thumb." 



And while all this is fine, there are not enough craftsmen with the green 

 thumb to satisfy all needs. Further, while the green thumb may have its vir- 

 tues, it may also have its faults. My father-in-law tells a story that illustrates 

 the point. One of the good neighbors a mile or so down the road had an in- 

 telligent young daughter, Sarah, who came to the house now and then to help 

 with the cooking. And when Sarah cooked a ham, she invariably cut off 

 the shank portion. Asked why she did this, she replied, "Because mother 

 always cooks a ham that way." The next time my father-in-law visited the 

 neighbors he thought to ask why Sarah had been taught to cut the shank 

 from the ham when she cooked it. At which the mother went straight to the 

 kitchen, returning smilingly with a small pan in her hands, to say, "You 

 see, we always cut off the shank because we did not have a pan large enough 

 to hold a whole ham! " 



And so, sooner or later, we invariably turn to some system whereby the art 

 and the folklore of a subject may become tested, rationalized, and catalogued, 

 so that it can be handed to a great number of men for use. This is particularly 

 so in America, where the exactitudes of conquering and subduing a continent 

 have left little opportunity for some of the qualities which only time provides. 

 The tendency in America has been to work as much as possible, therefore, 

 by rules and handbooks and charts and tables as the engineer would do 

 when he builds a bridge, so as to remove the guesswork and the gamble. 



From this has come a sort of "biological engineering," or in our case "horti- 

 cultural engineering." It is all based on research and the research method, 

 which is essentially a careful or critical search for knowledge, participated in 

 and enjoyed by many — trained scientists, professional horticulturists, fruit 

 growers, and amateurs alike. It has come alive all over the world. Science 

 knows no geographical or political boundaries. 



Scientific plant breeding. Happily, there is already a good start toward 

 "horticultural engineering." The creation of improved varieties of horticultural 

 plants by scientific breeding methods is an example. In the past left largely 

 to chance, new varieties are now made to order for particular needs. The hardy 

 chrysanthemums from Chicago, the hybrid onions from the U.S. Department 



