The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1915-06-27
SCHOOL SUPERVISED HOME GARDENS
FOR CITY CHILDREN
Furnished BY the Department

! garden where q large number Of chill
) dren are brought together and eact
/ given small plot Of ground on which
to plant a few pennies worth of seeds
) The child's garden in the home bacf
yard, when under school supervision
; will supply every opportunity offered
, by the school garden and will do much
! more. It assures closer relation
ship between home and school and
} promises better understanding be
tween parent and teacher 1t obviates
many OF the troubles of the school
garden, such as that of stealing, fenc-
ing. protection, limited funds, sum
mer vacation. insufficient land. and
J Others. The home garden furthermore
USUALLY provides sufficient ground to
grow enough produce to supply the
home and to put the enterprise on a
commercial or business basis. The
child with garden embracing $500
square feet or over is able to raise at
least ten dollars worth Of produce and
Ito, obtain a fair idea of the POSSIBLE
Titles of gardening Such proposition
tends to broaden the child's vision.
THE home garden also is usually
large enough to keep the child DC,
cupied while out of school and at az
Occupation that is wholesome and UNI
der the eye of the parents. It pro-
vides at the same time for closer
companionship between parent and
child and encourages the idea af
mutual helpfulness.
Teachers Employed for Twelve
Months.
In general the bureaus recommend
Iation to schools regarding home gard
en- work is to engage in each graded
school one teacher who is prepared
by training and experience to take
charge of the garden work for the
whole school. Such teacher should be
engaged for twelve months and with
the understanding that she should de-
vote the regular number of hours to
teaching the usual school subjects, or
better, ali the elementary science sub
jects in several grades, and that the
garden work should be done after |
school hours, on Saturdays and holt |
days, and during the summer vacation. !
Arrangements may, if desired, be.
made to give vacation to the gard |
en- teacher during the winter. Such !
a teacher will demand higher sal
airy to compensate her for the extra
service. In large city where many |
such teachers have been employed |
the services of garden specialist I
as supervisor would be helpful.
In the larger schools, where thu !
enrolment exceeds three hundred, I
one or more additional teachers will
be necessary, for one teacher should |
not be expected to supervise properly |
more than about $50 back yard gard
ems. Experience has shown that as |
much produce can be raised from this |
of well supervised gardens as !
from twice the number of gardens in
supervised.
Getting Land.
1.-THE teacher should assist the |
pupils by way of securing land when |
back yards are not available. Nearby |
vacant lots may usually be procured /
for the purpose. The teacher also as
sists the children in planning their /
gardens and ordering their seed in ad-
vance of the planting season. She in |
structs them in the starting of plants
in the window and in hot beds and she |
demonstrates the methods of fertil'=- !
ing. spading. raking, hoeing. watering, I
thinning, marketing, and |
canning. Early in the season she
works with groups of children One
dlLSi uoOH SIG Will duuOuuC0 INdL LllC
children in certain block will meet |
in John Smiths back yard for dem |
onstration in preparing the soil and |
the seeds. The following
afternoon she will repeat the perform (
ance in Mary Jones' back yard for the /
benefit of the children In that section. |
This program is continued until the I
field has been covered. After the |
spring rush she works with the in
dividuals, making sure that they ara |
keeping UP succession Of cropping |
and are making the very best use OF
their land and their efforts
These recomm endations, according |
to DR.. Jarvis, are intended for the I
ordinary city school In few of the
larger cities, on account of an alb
sence of back yards, the plan can not /
be worked out perfectly, but in most |
cities there are more back yards and
vacant lots available than Is generally
believed. In the more congested /
cities the effort should be to approach |
rs nearly as possible this ideal. All
the available land should be utilized
and the typical school garden with its
small plots may be the nearest an. !,
proach The resourceful teacher usual 4
ly will find a way. 10 4
1t is the hope of DR. Jarvis that all 4
who are interested in the promo tion 4
Of this important work will bend their
efforts toward standardizing the gard
en- work in schools.
.es Woman Found Murdered,