x Introduction 



Plants can be brought to the schoolroom and studied in 

 window-boxes. It is not enough to see the plants through the 

 stage of germination merely ; k they should be watched until 

 their life story has been told. 



With the generous aid of the Education Department, it 

 is possible to add each year some simple, well-constructed 

 apparatus as a means of increasing interest in the work. It is 

 poor economy to use implements so crude as to give inexact 

 and unsatisfactory results, when, for a slight outlay, the correct- 

 ness and consequent value of an experiment may be insured. 

 Glass jars, flasks with rubber stoppers, retort stands, porous 

 flower-pots of various sizes, wire, thread, scissors, cork-borers, 

 glass and rubber tubing, U-tubes, glass funnels, and thermo- 

 meters are indispensable. 



Valuable suggestions may be obtained from Prof. Atkinson's 

 "First Studies of Plant Life," from the "Elementary Text- 

 book," by Prof. L. H. Bailey, and the accompanying Lessons, 

 the Plant Physiologies of Darwin and Acton, MacDougal, 

 Ganong, and Cavers. "The Teaching Botanist," by Ganong, 

 Miss Johnson's "Text-Book of Botany," and "Plant Geo- 

 graphy," by Schimper, are excellent books. " Flowering Plants 

 and Ferns," by J. C. Willis, of the Cambridge Biological Series, 

 is a valuable guide in the study of morphology, geographical and 

 economic botany. To this list may be added Maud Going's 

 charmingly written books, " With the Trees " and " With the 

 Wild Flowers ". 



My thanks are due to the generous advice and assistance 

 rendered by Dr. Marloth, Dr. MacOwan, Dr. Bolus, and the 

 Rev. Dr. Kolbe. 



* It is also a pleasure to express my deep indebtedness to 

 my present and former students who have kindly assisted me 

 in illustrating the book, in particular to Miss Lucette Creux 



