CHAPTER XX 



RURAL SCHOOL GARDENING 



EVERY rural school should carry on some phase of 

 garden work, if nothing more than window gardening for 

 a portion of the year. If there is enough available space 

 for a small garden the work may be grouped into three 

 classes: (a) That which includes the propagation and 

 culture of ornamental plants; (b) experimental work in 

 growing farm and garden crops; (c) the culture of a few 

 industrial plants not commonly raised in the vicinity of 

 the school. 



The ornamental plants are perhaps of the greatest im- 

 portance to the country schoolchildren. The educational 

 and aesthetic value of having a few flowering plants and 

 shrubs on the school grounds cannot be overestimated. 

 The work may well begin in the fall with the making of 

 cuttings and bulb gardening. 



The question of where to place the plants so that they 

 may not infringe upon the playground of the children is not 

 always easy to answer. As suggested in the lesson on 

 bulbs and bulb gardening, a narrow bed may be arranged 

 on each side of the walk. If tulips are planted here in the 

 fall they may be replaced by geraniums in the spring or by 

 annual-flowering plants. If there is a fence around the yard, 

 then the back fence will form an admirable background 

 for the main flower bed. Dig the bed about three or four 



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