The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-05-26
Vacant Lot Near schoolhouse is Being
Cultivated by 1903 Little Boys
and Girls in Fine
Manner.
RAISING VEGETABLES
chIldren Are Jealous In the Work
S. ana III Anything, Are reo At
a. tentive to Their Little
Estates.
limited Press Special Service. ]

NEW YORK, May Zb.-F arms III
New York? Surely. There are farms
in g lot OF stray corners of the cas-.
side, and the farms In one respect are
like the farmers-both are diminutive.
This spring as has been the case for
several years, the vacant lots of the
east side are being cultivated by
school children. The school garden
idea was initiated by Mrs. Henry Par
sons, and it has grown until now IT.
is a part of the general education
system.
In one particular garden los little
boys and girls are cultivating plots.
1t is in vacant lot across the way
from one of the public Fairgrounds,
and the small farmers are superln-
tended by the young women teach
ers'' assigned to the recreation
grounds.
The lot had most dilapidated ano
forsaken look until it was turned over
| to the little ones and then it began
Ito hold up its head, so to speak. The
+, youngsters toiled until they had re-
| moved wheelbarrows full Of debris
and tin cans. These they piled into
rockeries and over these before the
summer Is gone, petunias will put
forth their post-impressionist bios
SONS aud moon-vines will hide their
ugliness
Below the rockeries the 10S chill
dren planted their little experimental
gardens. They did not plant all flow
] ers. They planted vegetables on most
Of the ground. They dug the whole
field UP first, after they had cleaned
1t and then they fortified the earth
and planted 1t with six kinds Of vege-
tables, after the manner OF the PAX
sons gardens everywhere. Each little
garden had row Of beets, beans, car
rots, onions, radishes and lettuce
Each garden is supposed to furnish
. one meal of each vegetable to fam
ily of six and each plot costs SO cents
including fertilizer, seeds and tools
The children do all of the work them
selves.
Along the edges OF this particular
lot will later be planted four rows OF
corn. each child being given one hill
to cultivate and from which he or she
may have the ears. In another TRAN
gular patch will be planted tomato
crop. There will be 80 of these. SO that
every child, during the summer viii
have had experience in raising every
garden vegetable and also will have
received some material benefit from
the experiment. In the way of fresh
vegetables for the family. In addi
ton. there will be several especia
beds of kale, asparagus. brussels
sprouts and squash, which the chill
dren will be allowed to tend in turn
This summers experiment will fol
low largely that OF last year, in whici
not one child farmer failed. Thu
little tots had Just as good luck al
the older children. It Is communit!
teaching and community sharing, thu
community holding the tools. Twent,
sets of tools. each comprising
spade, fork, rake, hoe and waterin;
can. are kept In the community housr
: and the children use them In turn
Rarely is there any quarreling owe
!. their use.
During all the farming the childrel
;. are Jealous In theirfswork, and II any
. thing, are prone to give their gar
: dens too much attention. They wouf
\ sprinkle their plants four times da
81 the teachers did not prevent then
n These gardens are all over the cas-
n side. wherever there is vacant lo
+ the loan of which can be obtained
The mothers OF the neighborhoods ar
q perfectly absorbed in the performar
q ces of their children and, often a TO-
teign mother, watching the gardening
gives valuable advice about plantin:
y unknown to the teachers.
II All of the lots that were in use b
II the children farmers last year wer
If found In excellent shape this sprinl
N for the young agriculturists cleane
d up the ground when they gathere
$. the crops last fall and sowed 1t In ~
n for fertilization.
If at would be interesting to kno
h how many tons of loaf sugar al
Il stolen each year from restaurants an
hotels to be fed to horses" said tn
c. manager of one of a string of populs
lg priced lunch rooms the other day.
IT 1--WE used to let customers hel
h, themselves from a huge bowl holdir
% pounds but We found that all
Or our coffee profits, and then som
h. were stolen. Men would FIJI the
rockets and women carry off sugar
their handkerchiefs and then feed
lump by lump TO horses In the stree
Some women carry sugar from hon
to give to horses, but more of the
= steal 1t from restaurants"