TREE PLANTING IN SCHOOL YARDS 



BY 

 Louise Klein Miller, Curator of School Gardens, Cleveland, Ohio 



Gardening Association, h:i- <lin.cti<>n 

 of the school garden-, -uperintei' 

 the planting <>l" tree- ami shrub- I 

 the ini]>niveineiit of the school ur aind- 

 and delivers illustrated lecture- in the 

 ])uhlic school- for the purpose "f giv- 

 ing specific directions on ])re]iarati< >n 

 of soils, planning and la\ ing <>ut "t" 

 garden-, arti-tic color combinations, 

 and success),, u of blooming and crop-. 

 The city is not only made more smi- 

 tary and heantiful. hut the children 

 are becoming strong and well, and an- 

 acquiring a life-giving, whole-vine OC- 

 cupatii m. 



The herbaceous hotanical garden 

 which has been started will eiiahle the 

 children to study plants scientifically. 

 In the near future it is hoped to have 

 an arboretum of trees ; nd shrubs, 

 which will serve as a lahoratory for 

 students taking a course in landscape 

 gardening, horticulture, arhoriculture. 

 and the elements of forestry: and serve 

 as a base of supply for the improve- 

 ment of the school gri iunds. 



The children raise their flower- 

 home. an<l in the autumn bring them 

 to the schools for the annual flower 

 shows. ludge Dellenbaugh. who has 

 always heen a most generous friend, 

 will give each school that had a flower 

 show last autumn a tree for Ar 

 1 >a\ . Last spring the I'.orird of Kdu- 

 cation supplied ,,ne or several trees 

 for each school yard. Kach chil<! 

 \vlio did efficient and faithful work in 

 the school gardens \\ en a < 



tul^i .s-/vc-/r>.xv for home planting, -eiit 

 by Mr. I'.r 'wn. editor of . Irboricnlturc. 

 Through the generosity of Mr. I'.foun 

 a thousand (\ttulpii .s'/vrM.N,; are ready 

 for distrihution to the children and 

 school- this spring. 



The superintendent of one of the 

 parks Mates that the work liein.y done 

 in the school- i- xliowin^' its influence. 

 because several year- a-o. in some of 

 the foreign neighborhoods, as soon 



as tree- and shruhs \\ere planted they 

 were injured or destroyed, hut no\\- it 

 is a rare thin-- for any plant to he 

 turbed. 



T 1 \.\ appreciation of forest- and 

 * foresl ]>reservation is ever to he- 

 conie -enerak iuhlic sentiment \\n\-\ 

 lie aroused, and the most comprehen- 

 sive way of accomplishing the result 

 is to educate the children of the pub- 

 lie schools and. through them, their 

 parents. 



Through the efforts of the Home 

 ('.ardetiin^ Association, the children 

 of Cleveland are becoming intelligent- 

 ly interested in flowers, and as a con- 

 sequence, hack yards have heen cleaned 

 up. and made objects of beauty and de- 

 light. 



The association was organized a 

 few years ago by the residents ot 

 Goodrich House, a social settlement in 

 me of the most congested and immoral 

 districts of the city. The neighbors 

 were called together and a Home dar- 

 denin^ Club was formed, each member 

 paying ten cents as annual dues, and 

 receiving in return ten penny ]>acka^"es 

 of seeds. The dreary back yards were 

 transformed, the people were regener- 

 ated, and light came into many souk 

 through contact with the beautiful. 



What proved so uplifting in one 

 community it was felt could not fail to 

 be of influence in other sections of the 

 city. The president of the Home Gar- 

 dening Association secured permission 

 from the school authorities to sell 

 penny packages of seeds to the chil- 

 dren of the public schools. The first 

 year 40,000 packages were sold; and 

 k si year over 540.000 packages were 

 disposed of to children of Cleveland 

 <md other cities that have adopted the 

 Cleveland plan. Hy purchasing seeds 

 in large quantities the association 

 found it could make money, all of 

 which is used for extending the work. 



The school gardens, the outgrowth 

 <if the movement, were started about 

 three years ago. supported by the 

 Home Gardening Association and the 

 Hoard of Kducation. Last year the 

 school gardens were mad'- a regular 

 part of the school work, under the di- 

 rection of the Curator of Scho 1 Gar- 

 dens. She co-operates wit'- the Home 



