GARDENS AND THEIR MEANING 
170 
It is quite a common practice to raise cereals, hemp, and 
flax expressly for the geography classes. One teacher ^ offers 
a list of five plants which in her school have proved particu- 
larly valuable. These are hemp, tobacco, flax, peanuts, and 
rice. She says : "In connection with the hemp growing of 
Russia and the Philippine Islands, the planting of hemp seed 
became a highly desirable thing. The interesting young plants 
were eagerly watched and tended. The vigorous plant, with its 
strong, unusual, and beautiful foliage, attracted general admi- 
ration. Its rapid growth and great size were enthusiastically 
noted. In the fall the plant was studied carefully, the stems 
being pulled apart and a kind of rope, of the long, tough fibers, 
made in the classroom by the boys. This led easily to lessons 
on rope making, kinds of rope, and the various uses of rope." 
We should certainly expect the growers of plants to be 
the ones who could best arrange flowers and fruits, whether 
for home enjoyment or for sale. What eyes could possibly 
discern more quickly and display more lovingly the best fea- 
tures of their products ? Fruits often decorate a room or a 
dinner table more effectively than flowers. At exhibitions the 
art of arranging fruit and flowers receives distinct recognition. 
It calls out special talent and demands special training. On 
these occasions prizes are sometimes offered for excellence 
in this respect alone. 
"In our school building," writes a seventh-grade teacher, 
" the children supply the drawing teacher with flowers for 
her lessons during the season. We asked her beforehand 
what she would like to have us plant, since some plants were 
more desirable than others for her work. These were used 
in sketching, designing, and in the color work." 
It is a short step from garden to kitchen. In gardening 
the schoolgirl finds opportunities which belong almost wholly 
1 Miss Elizabeth Mailman, Rice School. 
