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PREFACE 



THE most important question that confronts the teacher of 

 elementary botany is the selection of the subject matter for 

 the course. Shall the work consist chiefly of the naming of 

 plants and of learning the meanings of terms descriptive of 

 plants and of plant organs, as was common 30 years ago? 

 Does a course emphasizing a study of the anatomy of plant 

 organs provide the best introduction to the subject of botany 

 for pupils of secondary school grade? Have those courses 

 been satisfactory in which the work centered about the evolu- 

 tionary development of the plant kingdom, with studies of 

 the reproductive organs and life histories of types representa- 

 tive of the great plant groups, or shall we teach physiology 

 and ecology? Shall we select as material for study wild 

 plants, often obscure and unfamiliar to the pupil, because 

 they show certain structures significant in determining the 

 relationships of plants, or shall we use the familiar plants 

 of the farm and garden, on which man depends in large part 

 for his livelihood, to exemplify botanical principles? Is it 

 best to try to give a " practical" turn to the course by insert- 

 ing chapters from other subjects like agriculture, forestry, and 

 plant breeding ; or shall the course be kept within the strict 

 confines of botany and the relation of botanical facts and 

 principles to plant production be shown by appropriate refer- 

 ences and illustrations ? Upon the answers given to these 

 questions the content of the course to be offered will largely 

 depend. 



The author is one of those who think that our work in 

 botany should serve as a basis for agriculture, horticulture, 

 and forestry, just as physics and chemistry form the natural 

 background of our manufacturing and industrial life. His teach- 

 ing experience has led him to believe, moreover, that a very 



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