CHILDREN'S GARDENS 



ture, bookkeeping and horticulture. The in- 

 struction not only includes theory, but practise 

 work in the garden. Another important decree 

 of December 11, 1887, declares that " No plan 

 of a school-building in the' country to which the 

 State contributes shall be accepted unless a gar- 

 den be attached." 



! In Belgium horticulture is compulsory. All 

 public elementary schools have gardens, which 

 must contain at least thirty-nine and one-half 

 square rods, and the teacher must be qualified 

 to give theoretical and practical instruction in 

 vegetable culture. 



The garden movement is not regulated by 

 law in England. The theoretical and practical 

 work is generally under the direction of the 

 agricultural schools. Sweden was one of the 

 pioneers in an interest in school gardens. They 

 are required by law, and there are about ^ve 

 thousand. In Norway and Sweden the manual 

 training has become so important in the systems 

 of education that gardening is somewhat on 

 the decline. Owing to the severity of the cli- 

 mate the school gardens of Russia are confined 

 to the southern part of the country. They in- 

 clude the raising of grain, vegetables, fruit, 

 kitchen-truck, grapes, mulberry-leaves for sup- 

 porting silkworms, fruit-trees, and the cultiva- 

 tion of bees. 



14 



