CHAPTER III 

 SOIL FERTILITY 



"Agriculture is the oldest of the arts and the newest of the sci- 

 ences," 



" Finely divided nutritious soil, with a reasonable supply of water, 

 is the prime requisite of successful gardening." 



"Perfect agriculture is the true foundation of trade and indus- 

 try, — it is the true foundation of the riches of states." 



TO become a successful teacher of school 

 gardening it is not necessary to be an agri- 

 culturist, botanist, entomologist, psych- 

 ologist or chef; but a knowledge of the funda- 

 mental principles of agriculture is needed, in order 

 to give plants their right soil, and to protect and 

 encourage their growth. Elementary botany is 

 needed to make clear to the child processes of 

 growth, the adaptation of parts to development, 

 and the life history of the plant. The teacher 

 should have sufficient knowledge of entomology to 

 discriminate between the insects that are benefi- 

 cial and those that are hurtful to plant life, and 

 to tell their life story. She should be enough of 

 a cook to give practical lessons in preparing the 

 food raised in the garden, and to be on the watch 

 to introduce the use of new vegetables, especially 



83 



