224 
GARDENS AND THEIR MEANING 
SUGGESTIVE EXPERIMENTS SUITABLE FOR YOUNG 
GARDENERS! 
I. Presence of Air in the Soil 
(d) Materials. Soil and flowerpot or can, beaker of water. 
Directions. Submerge pot of earth in water. Air bubbles will 
arise from soil. Same may be shown by clod of earth in water. 
{d) Materials. Six beakers, graduate, soil samples. 
Directio 7 is. Put a measured amount of soil (about 250 ccm.) into 
each beaker. Pour water into the beaker from the graduate (con- 
taining a measured quantity) until it rises to the surface of the soil. 
Find how much water it takes in each case, recording results. 
II. Soil Temperatures 
Materials. Two or three thermometers. 
Directions. Take this excursion on a bright spring day when 
plowing begins. To take the temperature of a soil, bury the bulb 
of the thermometer about three inches deep in the soil. Very 
great care must be taken not to break the thermometer. Leave 
the thermometer imbedded for from 10 to 20 minutes, so as to 
obtain correct results. Take the temperature of the soil on a 
northern and on a southern slope, also of clay and sand, of un- 
plowed and freshly plowed fields, and of grass and tilled fields. 
In each case try to find adjacent soils that are alike except in the 
two things to be compared. 
You will probably find that the one mentioned second in each 
case is the warmer. Why ? 
III. Capillary Rise of Water in Soils 
Materials. Two small glass plates, three glass tubes (three feet 
long and from one and one half to two inches in diameter), pan of 
! Adapted from Public School Agriculture, Massachusetts Agricultural 
College. 
