278 BULLETIN 160 



influential men of the district should be secured before the 

 meeting is called. 



Propose a "bee" for improving the school grounds. John 

 Smith will agree to repair the fence (or take it away, if it is not 

 needed). Jones will plow and harrow the ground, if plowing 

 is necessary. Brown will sow the grass seed. Black and Green 

 and White will go about the neighborhood with their teams 

 for trees and bushes. Some of these may be got in the edges of 

 the woods, but many of the bushes can be picked up in front 

 yards. Others will donate their labor towards grading, planting, 

 and cleaning up the place. 



The whole thing can be done in one day. Perhaps Arbor Day 

 can be chosen. 



C. THE PLAN OF THE PLACE. 



This is the most important part of the entire undertaking, the 

 right kind of a plan for the improvement of the grounds. The 

 person who calls the meeting should have a definite plan in mind ; 

 and this plan may be discussed and adopted. The remainder of 

 this bulletin is devoted to plans for school grounds and means of 

 working them out. If any person is interested in this subject, he 

 should have our Bulletin 121, on the " Planting of Shrubbery." 



Begin with the fundamentals, not with the details. If 

 an artist is to make a portrait, he first draws a few bold strokes, 

 representing the general outline. He ' ' blocks out ' ' the 

 picture. With the general plan well in mind, he gradually 

 works in the incidentals and the details, the nose, eyes, beard. 



Most persons reverse this natural order when they plant their 

 grounds. They first ask about the kinds of roses, the soil for 

 snowballs, how far apart hollyhocks shall be planted. It is as if 

 the artist first asked about the color of the eyes and the fashion 

 of the neck-tie ; or as if the architect first chose the color of 

 paint and then planned his building. The result of this type 

 of planting is that there is no plan, and the yard means nothing 

 when it is done. Begin with the plan, not with the plants. 



The place should mean something. The home ground 

 should be home-like, retired and cosy. The school ground 

 should be set off from the bare fields and should be open enough 



