Apples, peaches, pears, and other fruits grow on plants. All these we use for food.
Plants also supply us with material for clothing. Some clothes are made from cotton; cotton grows in the pod of a plant. Some clothes are made from linen; linen comes from flax, which is a plant. Hats are made from straw; straw is the stem or stalk of plants.
Now, these plants, which supply us with so much of our food and clothing, do not grow of themselves.
The ground must be plowed, the seeds planted and taken care of while growing. So, outside the city, you may see a great many people at work raising grain, vegetables, and other plants. This occupation we call agriculture or farming; the people we call farmers.
| HERDS OF COWS AND OXEN FEEDING. |
Animals, as well as plants, furnish much of our food. All meat comes from animals. We get milk from cows. From milk we make butter and cheese.
Animals also supply us with clothing. Many articles of dress are made of wool. Wool, you know, grows on the sheep. Shoes and kid gloves are made of leather. Leather is made from the hides of cows; sheep, oxen, and goats.
But animals could not live and grow if people did not carefully raise them. In the country, yon may see flocks of sheep and herds of cows and oxen feeding on the fresh sweet grass of the pastures. Those animals are called stock. The business of those who raise them is called stock-raising.
Most farmers raise cows, horses, and other animals. Which land does the farmer use for pasture? What is a pasture? What is a meadow?
Grazing means feeding on grass. What animals have you seen grazing? Does a dog graze? A cow?