September, 1912 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



57 



Gt^RDEVJ 



School Gardens and How to 

 Begin Them 



By Frances Duncan, New York 



IF THERE be first a willing mind" as 

 St. Paul has it, a school garden in some 

 form is possible almost anywhere when 

 two or three people are thoroughly in- 

 terested in the project. It was one woman, 

 who, in Boston, in 1878, began the first 

 work for children's gardens of which the 

 present wide-spread movement is the 

 result. 



The first move in the matter, is that the 

 two or three who are interested get to- 

 gether. The second step which I strongly 

 advise, is one not usually insisted upon 

 in our American school-gardening, and that 

 is, that those who are interested invite 

 into their councils a man or woman who 

 is a gardener of experience, whether such 

 a one is, or is not connected with the 

 educational system. If definite and prac- 

 tical instruction for the children is pro- 

 posed every gardener is sure to be interested 

 in the undertaking. A gardener of ex- 

 perience will prove of infinite help in 

 planning. He will see possibilities for 

 gardening under the most difficult con- 

 ditions where another would see only huge 

 expense and bristling impossibilities. 



It is not necessary that all school gardens 

 be of the same type. If one form of garden- 

 ing is not feasible another may be. If the 

 soil is poor and the authorities will do 

 nothing in the way of enriching, the 

 garden-member of the council will make a 

 wind-break of thorns, and suggest for the 

 planting poppies and nasturtiums and 

 portulaca. It is as useful for children to 

 learn how to fit their gardening to their 

 means as to try to stretch their resources 

 to their gardening ideas. And if the 

 young gardeners are skilful enough to 

 make their domain look lovely on a slight 

 appropriation, the interest of the townsfolk 

 is awakened and even a Board of Education 

 grows responsive. 



Suppose there is even no space alotted 

 for a garden, and yet the school building 



stands well back from the street, the 

 grounds "beautified" more or less with 

 shrubs. In this case the garden-member 

 will irreverently suggest that the shrubs 

 be dug up and moved back to make a 

 hedgerow, that two or three feet be re- 

 served next the building for vines, and that 

 all the rest of the space be devoted to 

 children's gardens. In his mind's eye he 

 will see a multitude of tiny garden-plots 

 making up one design, so that the whole 

 gives something the effect of what the 

 gardeners call "a parterre." The interest 

 of a gardener of the community may be 

 even of more use than in the planning. 

 Suppose the teacher knows little of garden- 

 ing. A half-hour after-school instruction 

 once a week from a man or woman who 

 really knows plants is worth tons of ad- 

 vice from the best-intentioned one who 

 doesn't. 



In American school-gardening, there are 

 three important points which are frequently 

 completely overlooked. Occasionally we 

 "beautify the grounds" in the large and 

 easy phrase, but we make no attempt at 

 establishing a permanent garden that shall 

 be of definite use to the school — and we 

 might. This is the first point. 



We should protect the garden and play- 

 ground from the wind and cold by a plant- 

 ing of tall shrubs and low-growing trees 

 and in making this planting the interests 

 of the children should be consulted; there 

 should be close evergreens for the birds 

 to nest in, berries for their winter food 

 (the white fruited mulberry will bring 

 birds from miles around and never have 

 I seen it planted on school grounds). There 

 should be early blooming shrubs, forsythia, 

 and jasmine, from which branches could 

 be cut in January and February for forcing 

 indoors, privet bushes for cuttings to edge 

 the little garden-beds, a hedgerow of flower- 

 ing trees, their blossom-time running from 

 the March yellow of Cornus Mas to the pale 

 November yellow of the tiny witch hazel 

 flowers. 



At the foot of this hedgerow should be 



the earliest bulbs — crocus, scilla, snow- 

 drops. In a shady part should be the 

 wild-garden, which, as far as the flora of 

 the neighborhood is concerned, becomes 

 through successive years a very complete 

 little botanic garden, jealously and care- 

 fully guarded by the children. In country 

 schools an arboretum could easily be started 

 simply by planting tree and shrub which 

 are found in the neighborhood. Carried 

 on through years, such collections would 

 have definite scientific value and do much 

 to awaken in the community an interest 

 in horticulture. 



There should be a long, low potting-shed, 

 a little tool-house, which might be a charm- 

 ing structure, made like a miniature house. 

 In the North, there should be coldframes, 

 for the garden-season is all too short. 



The other two points are these: Secondly, 

 that there is no attention paid to the set- 

 ting of the school garden, and, thirdly, none 

 to its arrangement. The children's gardens 

 might be the loveliest things in the city or 

 the town — gardens which people would 

 come from miles to see. Why should we 

 adhere to plots like cemetery-plots and 

 bare walls of chicken wire? Scarlet-runner 

 beans, morning-glories, nasturtiums, will 

 temporarily garland the chicken-wire, while 

 for more permanent beauty plant, these: 

 climbing roses at regular intervals (which 

 will make the little gardens enfite in June), 

 Clematis paniculata, for the September re- 

 newing of school, and trumpet vine for 

 August; these would make a delightful 

 setting for a garden whose home was in a 

 vacant lot protected from marauders by 

 wire. If the blank, brick wall of the school 

 building is alongside of the gardens, cover 

 it with vines: Ampelopsis Veitchii, the 

 quickest; English ivy, admirable for its 

 all the year greenness, or a rarely planted 

 but wholly delightful little Japanese vine, 

 Euonymus radicans, which keeps its cool 

 green foliage and holly-red berries through- 

 out the winter. And do more than this — 

 if the wall is long and blank, plant not. 

 only greenery to clothe it, but at intervals, 



The summer house, a place of rest, study and quiet enjoyment 



