IRISH GARDENING. 



II 



School Garden and Allotments. 



TiiK fDiuied ion bet v, ccii school gaidciis and 

 allot incuts is more close than is sometimes 

 I'ealised. Tliis has been it'cognisod in providin<; 

 Inst rnctioii t'ov allotment holders, the fjreat 

 majority ol' whom are unused to gardening work. 

 The ti'rnis used in the gai-(ien are frequently as 

 unfamiliar to the allotment holder as they are to 

 llie boy at school, and it becomes necessary to 

 arrange that tlie instruction is definite and easily 

 understood. Th(^ operations of trenching, double 

 digging and ordinary digging are often misunder- 

 stood. The twofold functions of farjuyard 

 manui'e. tin* su]i|)ly of plant food and (he im- 



cnltivation mvist be taught. In many cases the 

 tools to use and the methods of handling them 

 must be described and piactically demonstrated. 

 There are at present no figiu-es available 

 showing the eneigy wasted by wrong methods in 

 digging for garden crops, but in other occupations 

 it lias been shown that better work can be done 

 by a smaller expenditure of energy when 

 tools are specially adapted to the work in hand. 

 One definite case may be mentioned where by 

 lengthy experiments it was shown that for the 

 woriv of shovelling loose materials a shovel of 

 21 11^ capacity produced a gi'eater out])ut under 

 tiie best conditions for the emjdeyee tlian eiflier 

 a larger or a sm-dlei- implriiicnt. 



CiTiNESE rtnniionKNDHONs 

 R. nrcotiep}i-s in its Natural Haliitat. Dioto by :\Ir. Conrge Forrest. 



provement of the physical condition of the soil — 

 need to be insisted upon. The corrective effect 

 of lime seldom receives the attention it deserves. 

 On the other hand, many beginners iiave been 

 puzzled by the contradictory ad.^^ce given regard- 

 ing the most suitable varieties to grow on an 

 allotment and the various manures recom- 

 mended for particular crops. 



Some years ago attention was dra\\ u to the in- 

 definite character of tlie advice given in gardening 

 literature. .Since that time considerable strides 

 have been made, but in connection with allot- 

 ments it is not realised that the efforts of the 

 allotment holder are nearly always limited, not 

 only by his lack of knowledge, but by his lack 

 of capital and by the lack of time. 



Allotments cannot be profitably cultivated by 

 the methods found suitable in a private garden. 

 Simpler methods, involving less labour and less 

 capital, must, in the great maiority of cases, be 

 adopted. The question therefore arises, what 

 are the essentials on which a system of instruction 

 must be built up, what must be taught, and what 

 in the early stages, at any rate, can be omitted ? 

 To begin with, the importance of early and deep 



In examining men for the army in England it 

 was found that a considerable percentage of 

 agricultural labourers had permanently injured 

 their working capacity by their uninstructed 

 methods of lifting heavy weights. It is such 

 questions as the correct methods of doing work 

 which need the early attention of tlie instructor, 

 and if he is able to explain the reasons such 

 methods have been adopted and to demonstrate 

 their superiority, h(> will find his advice is very 

 generally followed. 



W ith "the development of allotments there is 

 an increasing demand for the services of gardeners 

 who can give advice to plotholders. .Many 

 gardeners have already proved their capacity as 

 advisers and instructors, but a man may have 

 Ijoth the knowledge and ability enabling him 

 to produce good crops and still lack the ability 

 to induce others to do the same. The problem is 

 a difficult one, but it care is taken to he definite 

 and accurate and to omit the unessential points, 

 the gardener will find his long and usually varied 

 experience winning for him the respect ami 

 gratitude of any allotment holders to whoni his 

 advice is offered. L- •^- ^- 



