February 23, 1907 



HORTICULTURi: 



225 



is about oven with or a little below the top of the bench. 

 Many growers attach the lower edge of the cloth to a 

 second wire, which is fastened to the bench; this pre- 

 vents the cloth from blowing onto the cuttings on 

 windy days. JJuring bright weather spray the cuttings 

 two or three times each day. as the moisture on the 

 foliage is a great factor in helping to produce a good 

 and uniform strike. 



The temperature of the sand should be about 60 to 

 G2 degrees, with a house temperature of 50 to 58 de- 

 grees. This low temperature of the house is necessary 

 to keep the buds from starting and making wood while 

 root formation is in progress. Some growers use a 

 higlier temperature both in the sand and in the house 

 in order to work off the batch in shorter time, but the 

 time thus gained is lost when the young stock is potted; 

 the cooler handled stock goes to work at once and soon 

 makes up for lost time, both in size of plant, quality 6i 

 foliage and general constitution. 



A careful examination of the sand every morning be- 

 fore watering is absohxtely necessary, as the cuttings are 

 very sensitive to over-watering and seldom survive a 

 drying out. Given proper attention it is reasonable to 

 assume that the cuttings will be ready to lift and pot 

 in from twenty-eight to thirty days. 



Children's Gardens and the Trade 



The Children's Garden nmvoment is today beyond 

 the experimental stage. Since its beginning it has been 

 slow, up hill work and required energetic, enthusiastic, 

 hard working believers to keep it alive. Why has this 

 been so, why have not the trade done more to help 

 along this most important movement? Surely the gar- 

 dening trade will benefit more as the result of children's 

 gardens, both school and home, than anyone else. It 

 is to them a straight business proposition. 



We have today a general movement toward home 

 gardening, and though brought on through the press 

 the school gardens have taken no little part in bringing 

 gardening home to the parents. The trade has already 

 felt this movement, more seeds, more bulbs, more plants 

 and more flowers are sold today than ever before, but 

 very few people know how to spend money on their gar- 

 den, and why, because they have never had anyone to 

 tell them how or teach them what gardening really 

 means. At the convention of American Florists, held 

 last summer, the address by Mr. Hallock on teaching 

 horticulture in public schools is the first important step 

 that the trade has taken in the matter of children's gar- 

 dens. It seems deplorable to the writer tliat this step, 

 which is of such vital importance to them, has been so 

 long in coming. Let it be but the beginning of a new 

 force. Let every florist, seedsman and gardener help 

 the school and home gardening movement throughout 

 the country. 



Today we have the backing of eminent and able edu- 

 cators who say that school gardening is the best form 

 of industrial education and that it has advantages 

 which cannot be obtained in any other study in a school 

 curriculum. We have the children with us in the work, 

 they are enthusiastic, energetic and love it. It makes 

 no difference whether they are good boys or bad boys, 

 sissies or toughs, to put it in common language, tliey 



love it equally well, possibly giving the toughs the first 

 place. From a civic point of view children's gardens 

 are going to mean more than anything else to the fu- 

 ture welfare of our country. From the trade's point of 

 view it means more goods sold and a demand for higher 

 quality. Your customers will know what they want 

 and go where they can get it. There are some garden- 

 ers and florists who have woke up to the value of this 

 movement. They are pioneers and should receive all 

 credit due them for their good sense and generosity. 



What can the trade do? First, it can help financially, 

 not so much the mere giving of material as seeds, bulbs, 

 ])lants, etc., as in helping to procure land, manure, la- 

 bor and brains to pitt this land into proper condition 

 and to plan the work. Here come in technical points 

 which can be answered and which the public find diffi- 

 cult ; they are always ])uzzled as to what preparation 

 should be given to the soil and how to begin work, what 

 to plant, iiow to plant them and hundreds of points 

 which the professional can easily answer. Another ex- 

 pense in school gardening work is tools. These can be 

 supplied at cost and practical points given as to what 

 to select. They must be real tools, not play things, 

 though light and duralile. Children like to buy their 

 own seeds, and as they get full benefit of the crop let 

 them furnish out of their own money the cost of the 

 seeds, whether they select them themselves or not. So 

 many tradesmen have thought that all it was necessary 

 for them was to give a lot of seeds or plants, but that is 

 not all that is wanted ; it is advice and enthusiasm as 

 well. 



The greatest expense in all children's garden work 

 today is in a director, who must know how to garden 

 and how to handle children. He is of vital importance 

 to the success of the movement. Youngsters require a 

 leader. It is not enough to give them a piece of ground, 

 some tools and seeds and tell them to go ahead, they 

 want someone to show them how in the first years and 

 thev want someone who is interested in their results. 

 Often a director can be found who under some expert 

 can readily manage a successful garden. 



Horticultural societies, florists' societies, village im- 

 provement societies, etc., should plan exhibitions of 

 children's garden products, and the leaders in these 

 luovemcnts should be local florists, gardeners, nursery- 

 men and seedsmen. 



Wlien the trade does wake up to the value, not only 

 the aesthetic but the actual cash value of school gardens, 

 thev will realize that to take active part in it is worth 

 both time and money to them. They can have no better 

 advertisement if they do it right and they will get up a 

 strons sentiment among the children which will mean 

 a safe, sure and permanent investment for future busi- 

 ness. 



The ^Massachusetts Horticultural Society is doing 

 much along the line of school garden work. Their 

 committee is in close touch with this movement 

 throughout the country and their work is increasing- 

 rapidlv. Let other societies take up the work, and let 

 the trade join in and help those who have fonght so 

 liard and with so little encouragement to put the move- 

 ment where it belongs. It is a srood business proposi- 

 tion and a great thintr for the children. 







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