Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1907-05-02
ABOUT TREES
Tina. to set Them out on the
~
Farm and in the School
Yard.


on the farm and in the yard. Every
such home is benehtted.in many ways
by trees and shrubs. No more pleas
ant relief to the farm landscape can
be had than a clump OF trees near
They can be grown with
a little care and if the prairie home
is surrounded with trees it's value !
is also increased. The
following talk about frees is by Her
bert E. Austin instructor in science
at the Maryland State Normal school.
Protiting by past experiences. ought
we not to begin work this year with
a better underst anding Of what is to|
be done:
Farmers Bulletin No. 134, u. S.
Department OF Agriculture, entitled
Tree Planting on Rural School
Grounds, has so much in it of sug-
gestion and practical help for the
teacher that are we'll worth repeat
ing many of its practical directions.
If we are to profit by past expert
ences and learn from our mistakes as
well as from our successes. we must
review our accustomed methods OF
celebrating Arbor Day.
Method of Celebrating Arbor Day
"The governor OF each state annually
appoints Arbor Day at the proper
season for planting. This day is cele-
brated in the schools by public exer-
cises appropriate to tEee planting,
with essays, songs and recitations by
the pupils and addresses by visitors.
In connection with the exercises
there is ordinarily more Or less tree
planting. Great care is taken to
make the planting ceremonies i'm
pressive by letting the children take
part and by planting trees commem-
orative Of noted persons or events.
Much more attention is given 10 these
matters than to having the trees IN
the best condition and to planting
them just right.
''As might have been expected, the
resDlts upon the school grounds have
nos teen marked. $50 Otter This
work has been impulsive and the in
terest transient. Trees planted with
ceremonious dignity in April have
died of neglect before September, and
those that have survived have been
left to fight unaided their battles for
existence. So little attention has
been paid to the choice. .of..trees and
to the methods of planting that those
entirely unfit for the situation ha ge
often been used and have been plant
ed in places where they could not re-
ceive protection when young or serve
any useful purpose when grown.
"The educational results OF Arbor
Day endeavors, however, have been
extensive and beneficial, even though
the celebrations have been largely
exhibitions OF sentiment and the
planting almost wholly unsuccessful,
yet pupils teachers and parents have
learned much about trees as useful,
living things, and about forests as
great success of..national wealth to be
protected and perpetually main
tained. The smallness of the results
has itself drawn attention to the in
adequacy of past methods. 1t is due
in part to lessons learned in Arbor
Day planting, that we are now ready
to begin work with better under
standing Of what is to be done.''
Is not this review an accurate ac-
count of past methods Of observing
the day? Have we been getting the
results from our Arbor Day observ-
ance in the way of more attractive
school and home surroundings that
we're expected when this day was es
tablished?
Several causes have contributed to
the smallness of results obtained from
our Arbor Day observances.
/. Our lack OF knowledge of trees
and shrubs, with particular reference
to the right way of transplanting and
their proper care afterwards. We
cannot expect much in the way OF
permanent and satisfying results u.n-
til We have known what to do, how
to do and why we do it.
2. An idea that the art of tree
planting is too difficult to learn. or
so easy that there is nothing to
learn, the consequence in either case
being no effort to learn. Both of
these ideas are wrong. Attention to
and the intelligent carrying out Of
number 'onf simple but important de-
rails will bring success.
3. The lack of a definite and sys-
tematic plan of school ground decora-
tion toward the completion of which,