The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-12-16
SchOOl-Yard Horticulture.

very llllle mas yet DeeH uOue III V er-
mont to redeem our rural school-houses
and their surroundings from the bar
barism and neglect of earlier days.
Few yet realize the educative power of
neat and pure surroundings for our
children at school, as well as at home,
but there is beginning of reform in
these matters, at least in few places.
Recently the matter was discussed at a
meeting of the Ottawa (Canada) Hor-
ticultural Society, and Secretary Gar
field of the Michigan Horticultural So
ciety, who was present, was invited to
open the subject: els it desirable to
interest the children in the cultivation
of plants and trees by practical horticul-
ture in the school-yard?"
Mr.. GARFIELD.-I could just answer
the question by saying "yes." A few
years ago it seemed to us in Michigan
that it would be very excellent part of
our work to interest the children in
primary horticulture; but it appeared
to us that our society was not really the
body to take hold of this thing, because
we had a board of education, and a
university and normal school. We
thought we would nudge these people
and get them to do the work; but we
Judged and nudged, without being able
to get them to do anything. Then we
took hold of it ourselves, and this is
the method we took. We first inter-
ested Professor Tracy, who is the man
above all men in the state of Michigan
to have anything to do with floral mat
tiers. We took him into our circle and
asked him what was to be done, and he
said, Find some enterprising seed
firm, if you can, to give the children
seeds--to give them to them outright
on condition that the children shall
plant them and report results" took
up the idea, and wrote to a number of
seed firms, and the seeds were given to
the school-children with the under
standing that they should sow them,
and that we should get something back
from them that would help other chill
dren. So we issued circular which eX-
planned exactly what we sent the chill
dren and what was to be done with
each variety of seeds. We sent about
thirty varieties of seeds, and the first
year they went into about eighty school
districts in the state, and the teacher
was made responsible. We had the
school directors name in each instance,
so that we could enter into direct COM
munication with any district in which
seeds were planted. Out of the eighty
districts to which seeds went out we re-
ceived reports from about sixty the first
year, and we were surprised to find the
results that had been brought about by
those Authenticated results that we
had hardly been trying to reach. Each
teacher spoke of the greater ease with
which he or she controlled the pupils
they had under them, and said that the
cultivation of the flowers helped the in
door work. Almost everybody said,
You have begun at the wrong end,
because they won't take care of them"
They said, "Why don't you have an
arbOr day and get them to plant trees?"
But we found that in every case those
children were as careful of those seeds
as they were of their school-books.
That work has grown from 1879 till the
present time, so that now, not only dotted
here and there through our state we
find our school-yards in many places
beautified with fiower-beds, but regu-
lar arbor day has been established on
which we have trees and shrubs planted.
| do not think there is any work which
we can do as horticultural society that
is better than this one of interesting the
children in the cultivation of flowers
and shrubs and trees, because of the
good it will do not only in cultivating
their tastes, but in giving them informa-
ton as primary horticulturists which
will help them afterwards in work such
as you and l are doing
Mr.. BEADLE.-How much land have
you usually in connection with your
rural school-houses?
Mr.. GARFIELD.-I do not think it
averages over half an acre. A great
many of the teachers reported that there
was no place to put the seeds except
close to the school-houses.
Mr.. WRIGIIT.-I was a school-teacher
for seven years, and can tell you how
/ managed this thing. / came to the
conclusion that our school-house and
our grounds looked rather uninviting,
so said one night, I" l want all the
children to stay in after school," They
wondered what in the world was wrong;
but after school was over said, " Now
we have got a new school-house; the
trustees have put up nice building for
us here; l will tell you what propose.
There are four windows on this side of
the house; want those all filled with
flowers. Now how many can bring
me a plant tomorrow" The next
morning to nv utter establishments
every window on that side of the house
was filled with flowers and plants. The
stills were not quite large enough, so l
got boards and screwed them on to the
stills, and when the flowers and plants
we're put on them the windows looked
very nice indeed. told the children
that those were not my plants-that they
were theirs, and that they must attend
to them. So the next time it happened
to rain told them, "Now you had bet
L.. 4. III