i^i 



IRISH CAKOKNl N G . 



ot 



will sn<4}40sl tlionisoi 

 l'"or example, a : 



to i,''i\o the outlm 

 many development > 

 the work proceeJ^ 

 house and frames could tx- erected, thus 

 pro\idini^ winter and wet weather work. I^eds 

 mi^'-hl he set apart for the wild plants of our 

 country, collected, if possible, by tiie pupils. 

 providing: in a rock i^arden the variety of 

 situations necessary ; a boi^ could be imitated 

 with a tub and rough peat ; water piauls could 

 be g-rown in tubs, and rock plants placed in 

 the crevices of stones 

 rouijhly built up. Shrubs 

 mii^ht well be planted 

 in some spare corners 

 to hide unsightly objects 

 or for protection, and in 

 many ways be used to 

 render the garden not 

 only useful but beauti- 

 ful, and thus by fostering 

 a love of the country's 

 denizens, fostering a 

 love of the country itself, 

 making its children less 

 ready to leave it either 

 for the town or for some 

 other country. 



The influence of the 

 teacher is at least as 

 important a factor in 

 the success or otherwise 

 of the work as in any 

 other subject commonly 

 taught, and the extent 

 of the work should be 

 gauged, or if necessary 

 limited, having regard 

 to the power of the 

 teacher to cope with it. The nature of the sub- 

 ject itself renders most of the ordinary school 

 methods impracticable, but in this, as in most 

 subjects, the sympathy and enthusiasm of the 

 teacher are of the utmost importance. 



The gardening work should be arranged in 

 advance after consulting some gardening 

 calendar, and elementary lessons on the 

 principles on which the work is based should 

 be given as the work proceeds. In this way 

 samples of seed could be examined and tested 

 before being sown outdoors. A bulb might be 

 dissected in order to demonstrate its complete- 

 ness and why it can flourish in water, but 



numerous uistances aiul experu 

 gest theniseUes as the teacher l-.( 

 with plant re(.|uiretuents. 



The influence of soil elements 

 st rated by water cultures, and 

 1-iy manurial experiments, but i 

 taken to a\oitl theory which i 

 supported either by the results 



lents will sug- 

 comes familiar 



can be demon- 

 in the garden 

 ;u-e should be 

 aiinot he well 

 in the garden. 



Xanthoceras Sorbifolia (Flowering- Bia 

 liiotograptied from a specimen growing in tlie Hot; 

 Gardens, Glasnevin. 

 See also p. 155. 



mple deduction from well- 



le crops will deser\e con- 

 siderable attention, and 

 no opportunity should 

 be lost of instilling into 

 the pupil's mind the 

 necessity of prompt and 

 effective action in such 

 matters. In fine weather 

 as little time should be 

 given to verbal instruc- 

 tion as the subject will 

 allow, and all a\ailable 

 time should be devoted 

 to practical work by the 

 pupils, even at the risk 

 oi' some mistakes, as 

 often more is learnt by 

 a mistake than by a suc- 

 cess. In wet weather 

 more time can be spent 

 in lecturing, but it is 

 well that beyond some 

 clear, concise comments 

 on the garden work, 

 formal lectures should 

 be discouraged. A 

 wet day will give 

 opportunity for writing 

 notes, and working 

 practically through some lessons on the 

 principles of gardening such as have been 

 mentioned above, and if drawing accompanies 

 such lessons it will assist the formation of 

 habits of observation essential to the gar- 

 dener. One of the teacher's most valuable 

 auxiliaries is a note book, systematically 

 kept in diary form ; in this the pupil should 

 be encouraged to write observations of his 

 own on the garden work, the crops, and if 

 possible, on the state of the weather. This 

 will then form a lecord of easy reference when 

 the school garden has long been left behind. 

 The question of tools has often proved a 



ich). 



