54 



IRISH GARDENING. 



School Gardening. 



By L. J. HUMPHREY, Special Instructor in School Gardening under the 

 Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland. 



THE love of art equally with the love of nature can 

 be planted in a boy's mind by a judicious teacher 

 of gfardening- ; the g'raceful forms of plants, their 

 varied but harmonious colours, can be pointed out in 

 nature, and an endeavour made to copy what is most 

 suitable for the g^arden. It is of course impossible for 

 any teacher, however willing', however tasteful, to give 

 to all the pupils a love of the beautiful, yet a great deal 

 could be dox^e with some of them, and somethingfal least 

 with all. An experience which is all too common is to 

 visit a locality renowned for its scenery and to find that 

 many of the inhabitants are indifferent to its charms, 

 while others become each day more endeared to them, 

 and not seldom this lack of appreciation could have been 

 avoided by pointing out to those who are indifferent how 

 each light and shade make a scene beautiful, how each 

 plant, each stone, does each its part in building up the 

 whole, and nowhere could a better beginning for such 

 teaching be found than in the garden where every plant is 

 distinct and can be pictured, examined and compared 

 with its fellows at will. 



By means of the garden the spirit of local patriotism 

 can be aroused ; each pupil will be anxious to make the 

 garden at his school the best, and an effort at co-opera- 

 tion in working the garden will show how much can be 

 done by this means. All this must in the future tend to 

 make the men good citizens, who can instil into the men 

 of the future the lessons which the garden has been in- 

 strumental in teaching them. 



To ensure the good health of both teachers and 

 scholars a garden is almost essential. The too often 

 crowded and ill-ventilated class-rooms will render even 

 the strongest constitution liable to colds, chills and sore 

 throats, which are ever ready to attack both teachers 

 and scholars whose vitality has been lowered by the 

 vitiated air of the class-room. Just what a difference 

 regular work in the open air would make to the health 

 of teachers and scholars in this country cannot be pro- 

 perly gauged, but that the difference would all be on the 

 right side few will be found to doubt. 



There yet remains in many parts of the country a pre- 

 judice against manual work, and particularly when the 

 work makes it necessary to come in contact with the 

 soil, and this prejudice could be very largely removed in 

 a few years if the children, following the example of the 

 teachers they respect, worked in the garden, and were 

 thus taught to realise the dignity of labour. Once em- 

 barked on a course of gardening the enthusiasm of the 

 children, the interest the plants would arouse, and the 

 rivalry created, would carry the work through to a 

 successful conclusion. 



For the teacher, as for the scholar, the garden should 

 possess a constant interest; the ever-changing variety in 

 the garden, the influence of the seasons, should provide 

 material for object-lessons, for talks with the children, 

 for attracting the attention of the children to the beauty 

 of their surroundings, and so to instil a love of the 

 country and a liking for plant cultivation into the mind 

 of every child, and which love is the beginning of the 

 truest patriotism. 



On the boys' plot carrots and French beans may be 

 sown, and in the seed beds sowings of cabbage and 

 broccoli should be made. It is well to have plots of 

 lettuce ready for transplanting when opportunity offers, 

 and for this seed should be sown at intervals of about a 

 fortnight. If the celery trenches are got ready early, 

 radish may be sown on the ridges. Spinach should also 

 be sown this month. In the flower borders further sowings 

 of annuals should be made ; any of the earlier sowings of 

 which the plants are sufficiently advanced should be 

 thinned in order that bushy plants may be produced. 



The Cottage Flower Garden. 



WHAT a pleasing feaiine to see a cottage having 

 its walls adorned with climbing plants and its 

 small but neatly kept flower plots ablaze with 

 colour ! In this age, when the housing of the 

 working classes is having careful consideration, and the 

 unhealthy mud cabins are being rapidly replaced by up- 

 to-date sanitary dwellings, with acre or half-acre allot- 

 ments, it behoves householders to bestir themselves by 

 doing their part in beautifying their homes. I can say 

 without hesitation that during the past few years 

 horticulture has made rapid progress amongst our Irish 

 cottagers. The District Councils have also done a 

 good deal for its advancement by offering prizes for the 

 best kept and neatest gardens and cottages ; yet we 

 find some still very backward. Some cottagers have an 

 idea when they have their plot or allotment fully 

 stocked with potatoes, cabbages, &c. , that all is 

 complete ; but this is not so, as no cottage should be 

 without its share of flowers, no matter how few. Anyone 

 who has not as yet got some ground in preparation for 

 annuals or other flowers can do so in the present month, 

 and a good foundation can be laid for a show of bloom 

 during the summer. Should space be limited a border 

 can be arranged on each side of the entrance ; two and 

 a half feet from foot of wall will suftice for this. Com- 

 mence by taking out five or six inches of the surface 

 soil. When this has been completed, dig the remainder to 

 a depth of one foot at least. If the soil be light in 

 texture an addition of good loam, with some well 

 decomposed farmyard manure well forked in, will 

 improve its condition ; if of a stiff, clayey nature it will 

 be benefited by adding some leaf-soil, with a mixture of 

 old mortar rubbish or road-scrapings. The appearance 

 of the border will be improved by raising it somewhat 

 higher than the entrance. Should the cottage be in any 

 way damp it is better to form the border on the level. 

 The border is now ready to receive its climbing plants ; of 

 these we have many to choose from, annual and peren- 

 nial. In the annual section we have T. canariensis, better 

 known as Canary creeper, fringed yellow flowers ; also 

 tall nasturtium (Tropcenlicnt tnajus), a rapid and pretty 

 annual climber, blooms continuously until cut down by 

 frost. These are easily cultivated, and if grown against 

 the walls, with the aid of cord, can be arranged into 

 almost any shape. Should perennial climbers be pre- 

 ferred we have Ampehpsis se)npervirens^ a hardy ever- 

 green, self-clinging creeper, which if it once gets a hold 

 on a rough mortar surface will soon reach the top, and 

 will require little attention afterwards beyond trimming; 

 Ampehpsis Vetchii, another well known self-clinger, 

 the foliage of which turns a beautiful red in late autumn. 

 Then we have clematis in almost every shade of colour ; 

 Kerria j'aponica, a splendid climbing plant, with bright, 

 green foliage and covered with orange yellow blossoms ; 

 Jasminum officinalis, the old, sweet-scented white 

 jasmine, which should find a place in every cottage 

 garden. In addition to these; there is the old and 

 dearly-loved honeysuckle, and last, but not least, the 

 climbing rose. The walls having been furnished, we 

 can now consider what annuals to select. Dwarf 

 nasturtiums make a very pleasing border, and are of 

 easy cultivation. Empress of India is one of the best 

 vai-ieties ; if thinned to at least fifteen inches they will 

 make nice bushy plants. Candytuft is also a very 

 showy annual, and if the plants are thinned to six 

 inches apart will give a good return of bloom ; Rose 

 Cardinal, of a rich, deep rose colour, is a fine variety. 

 Saponaria calabrica, a charming little annual, blooming 

 almost continuously; height, six inches; but being of 

 a spreading habit requires severe thinning. Then we 

 have a universal favourite in the mignonette, whose 

 fragrant perfume is always delightful. 



P. Mahon. 

 The Gardens, Killeen Castle, Dunsany. 



