STUDYING NATURE
"I see a bean pushing up," came the statement one morning and every child wished for a peep at the tiny plant.
"In which soil did the plant appear?"
Another look was taken and answer given that the plant came from the mixed soil.
The second plant to appear came from the bed of coarse loam; the one in the pot of fine loam came third; and last the one in the sand struggled to a small shoot, then died of starvation.
After this the life of one plant was studied. Thus slowly and cautiously the study of seed germination was made, the teacher getting all from the child possible, and aiming to have him cull his information from the plant before his eyes.
Now that we were familiar with the facts concerning soil composition and seed germination, we felt prepared to take up the outside work.
Between the first and the fifteenth of April our first visit to the garden was made. The ground was so saturated with water that it was impossible to think of working it in that condition. After taking a view of the surroundings we discovered that the plat was on low ground and that the water from the rising slopes at the back ran down and settled upon it.