THE SCHOOL-GARDEN 61 



Some of the specific ways in which our out- 

 look has been extended by the growth of horti- 

 culture which is the growing of plants may 

 be mentioned: 



It has opened our eyes to all the multitude 

 of flowers and ornamental plants. 



It has increased our national wealth and 

 has opened the way for large commercial 

 industries. 



It has elevated the public taste so that 

 parks and well-kept lawns are now a civic 

 necessity. 



It has had much to do with the breadth 

 and spirit of the modern movement that 

 we call nature-study. 



It has made plants a part of the home, as 

 books and pictures are. Plant collections 

 stand for culture. Not only do they appeal 

 to the individual who has them, but also to 

 a wide circle of persons, since they are 

 living, growing things and cannot well be 

 hidden. 



It has awakened an intrinsic interest in 

 natural objects. People have come to love 

 plants. They like the plant itself as well as 

 its flowers. They know that a plant is 

 worth growing merely because it is a plant. 

 They have come to feel that every animal 

 and plant lives its own life. It has its battles 

 to fight. It contends. Thereby is the indi- 

 vidual man carried beyond himself. 



