54 
GARDENS AND THEIR MEANING 
The garden having thus been properly inclosed, the next 
consideration will be that of soil. Just as no site is hopeless, 
so no soil is beyond reclaim. And yet one must not assume 
from this remark that good earth is not quite as necessary as 
a good location. The difference is that if the soil does not 
come up to the required standard, it can be made to order. 
Portable soil is a term that explains itself. It appears that 
for some years the small gardeners near Paris have stipulated 
in their renting contracts that when they quit their tenancy 
they may carry away the soil down to a certain depth. A 
recognized expert says quite truly, " Instead of searching for 
soil, we are learning how to make it.” In city gardens, in- 
deed, the necessity of making the soil is virtually a foregone 
conclusion. 
But whether the garden is in town or country, if it has any 
soil worth the name, the first step is to examine the earth 
carefully and then undertake to supply what it lacks. The 
way is to take up a handful here and there, in order that all 
parts of the land shall be fairly represented, then bring the 
samples indoors so as to examine them thoroughly and to 
determine whether the ingredients are chiefly sand, clay, or 
loam. That this is a practical method is indicated by one 
of the recent devices at the Iowa experiment station. It is 
what is known as a soil sampler, something on the plan of an 
apple corer, by means of which a solid core of soil, three 
inches in diameter and of any depth up to fifteen inches, can 
be taken out. 
The school gardener will usually like to go on and make 
a few simple tests. ^ Just an ordinary magnifying glass will 
reveal something of the character of these grains of earth. 
For one thing, it will show what a surprising amount of water 
is contained in one crumb of earth. Even when soil looks 
1 Public School Agriculture^ Massachusetts Agricultural College. 
