FORM III
SPRING
WINDOW BOXES
Many garden plants should be started in a box of earth in a warm, sunny
window. In some schools this can be done with a little care in heating
on cold nights. Small boxes or grape baskets full of rich sandy loam
with an inch of gravel in the bottom for drainage may be used. Sow the
seeds in rows or broadcast. To prevent the soil from drying out too
quickly, cover the box with a pane of glass. When the plants are up,
give them plenty of light and not too much warmth. On very mild days set
them in a warm, sheltered place out-of-doors and bring them in again
early in the evening. This tends to make them hardy. When about three
inches high, pick the young plants out and set them in other boxes a few
inches apart. This moving causes the formation of numerous fibrous roots
and makes stronger plants.
WINDOW GARDENS
Window boxes may be used for a whole season on the inside of the
building in cold weather, and on the outside in warm weather. There is
almost no limit to the kinds of plants that can be grown in them, but
they are most suitable for flowers.
Good boxes may be made of dressed lumber so as to fit on the
window-sill. They should be six inches deep, ten inches wide, and the
required length. They should have a few small holes in the bottom to
allow excess water to drain off and should be painted dark green or some
quiet colour. There should be an inch of gravel in the bottom, some
rotted sods covering this, and then the box filled with rich sandy loam.
SUITABLE PLANTS
Some flowers suitable for growing in window boxes outside in summer are
those of drooping habit: lobelia, Kenilworth ivy, verbena, tropeolum,
petunia, and sweet-alyssum toward the front, and behind, more erect
plants, such as geranium, heliotrope, begonia, phlox, and nasturtium.
The box must not be too much crowded.
For inside and in shady situations the following are suitable:
tradescantia, parlour ivy, moneywort, vinca smilax, climbing fern,
asparagus fern, dracaena, coleus, centaurea, sword fern, and Boston fern.
For indoor boxes in winter, the following may be used: abutilon,
calceolaria, cyclamen, violets, primroses, petunias, geraniums, freesia,
and such foliage plants as dracaena, cannas, dusty miller, and coleus.
The following climbing plants may be trained up the window cases:
asparagus plumosus fern, cobea scandens, smilax, maurandia, and English
ivy. If drooping or trailing plants are desired, the following may be
used: oxalis, sweet-alyssum, lobelia, ivy, geranium, Kenilworth ivy, and
Wandering Jew.
FERTILIZER
As the amount of soil is limited and the number of plants that it has to
support is great, the soil should be made quite rich and should be
further fertilized from time to time with a little liquid manure. This
can be best obtained by taking a strong barrel or large keg and filling
it about half full of water. Then fill an ordinary coarse potato sack
with cow-stable manure and set the sack in the barrel for a few days. A
tap in the bottom of the barrel is most convenient for drawing off the
liquid manure. A little of this will also be found valuable for watering
dahlias, roses, and other garden plants during the summer.
SOIL STUDIES
The classes of soil should be reviewed. Pupils should gather examples
from many places. The samples may be kept in bottles of uniform size and
should include not only the four types but varieties of each, also
various kinds of loam.
EXERCISES AND EXPERIMENTS
SOIL CONSTITUENTS
1. With a sharp spade, cut a piece about twelve inches deep from (1) the
forest floor, (2) an old pasture field. Note character and order of the
layers of soil in (1) leaves, humus, loam, sand, or clay; in (2) grass,
dead grass, humus, loam, sand, or clay. Observe soils shown in railway
cuttings, freshly dug wells, post holes.
2. Note the effect produced on the soil of a field by (1) leaving it a
few years in pasture, (2) ploughing in heavy crops, (3) applying
barn-yard manure. In all these cases vegetable matter is mixed with the
soil.
3. Dry some good leaf-mould. Throw a handful on the surface of some
water. The mineral matter sinks, while the vegetable portion remains
suspended for some time. Try this experiment with gravel, sand, and
clay. Note that the gravel sinks rapidly, the sand less rapidly, and
that the clay takes a long time to settle. If the water be kept in rapid
motion, the finer soils will all remain suspended till motion becomes
slower. Apply this in geography. The bed of a stream will consist of
stones if it be swift, of sand if less swift, and of clay if very slow.
How are alluvial plains formed?
4. Place half an ounce of dry humus on an iron plate or fire-shovel and
heat strongly in a stove. Note that it begins to smoke and a large part
smoulders away to ashes; the mineral portion remains. Weigh the part
left and find what fraction of the humus consisted of vegetable
material.
Try to find the proportion of vegetable matter in each of the following:
loams from various sources, sand, clay, gravel. The last three will show
scarcely any change. This experiment will give rise to some good
arithmetical problems in fractions.
WATER IN SOILS
5. Compare a handful of fresh garden soil with the same soil dried. Note
the glistening of the fresh soil, also its weight and darker colour. The
fresh soil admits of packing though no water can be squeezed from it. In
its best condition, the water of the soil adheres as a film of moisture
about every particle. Free water is to be avoided since it excludes the
air from the soil.
6. Equal weights of soils of different kinds and degrees of fineness are
placed in funnels or in inverted bottles with bottoms removed. Water is
then slowly added to each until it begins to drop from the lower end.
From this is seen (1) the great value of humus as a water holder, (2)
the advantage of fine soil over coarse. For retention of water by
absorption, consult _Nature Study and Life_, Hodge, page 382.
7. Take two wooden boxes (chalk boxes will do), fill one box with moist
sand and the other with moist leaf-mould. Weigh the boxes separately and
leave them for three or four days in a warm room. Weigh again and note
decrease from evaporation. The sand dries out much faster than the
humus. Test with clay, gravel, and loam, also with mixtures of these and
leaf-mould.
8. Take three paint cans; punch holes in the bottoms. Fill each with
good soil well shaken down. Stand the cans in water till the tops are
moist, then place them in a warm, dry place. Loosen the soil on the top
of No. 1 to a depth of one inch; on No. 2 to a depth of two inches;
leave No. 3 untouched. Find out after a few days which is drying out
fastest. How may soil be treated so as to lessen evaporation of water?
DRAINAGE
9. Gravel and sand allow water to run away rapidly, but where the soil
is fine or closely packed as in clay soils, under-drains are necessary
(1) to carry off the surplus water, (2) to allow air to enter the soil,
(3) to warm the soil (wet soil is colder than dry).
Take two equal-sized tin cans, make several holes in the bottom of one,
place therein a layer of broken pottery or stones, and fill with good
soil. Fill the other with similar soil but make no holes for drainage.
Plant in each can a healthy plant of the same size and kind. Water both
till the soil is saturated and continue watering every two or three
days for six weeks. Note (1) the progress of the plants, (2) the
temperature of the soils, (3) which plant has the largest and deepest
roots. (See _Bulletin 174_, Ontario Department of Agriculture.)
10. Take five equal-sized boxes, provide for drainage, and fill No. 1
with wood, earth, or humus, No. 2 with clay, No. 3 with sand, No. 4 with
a mixture of clay and humus, No. 5 with a mixture of sand and humus.
Plant corn in each box, set in a warm room, and keep watered for two or
three weeks. Note in which case growth is most rapid. Set boxes in a dry
place and cease watering. Which suffers most from the drought? Which
bakes hardest in the sun? Test the temperature of each after watering
and standing in the sun for an hour. Sand is warmer than clay, also the
presence of humus raises the temperature. This item is important, since
most seeds decay instead of sprouting if the temperature is below 45 deg.
Fahrenheit.
11. Enumerate the services rendered to the soil by humus.
12. In Experiment 10, let the corn grow for some time and determine
whether the very rich humus is the best in the end. Sand and clay are
almost altogether mineral; leaf-mould almost entirely organic; neither
alone is good, but a mixture gives the best results.
GARDEN WORK
The boys of this Form should attend to the fertilizing and spading of
the plots belonging to the girls of their Form. The girls themselves can
do all the rest of the work, and they should try to keep the plots
level, uniform in size, and in a straight line. If the corner posts are
kept in line and the plots made up the exact size, the appearance of
the garden will be greatly improved.
The pupils are now old enough to make their own choice of flowers and
vegetables. Very tall growing plants, such as corn and sunflowers, are
not desirable in individual plots as they shade other plants near them.
Corn is best grown in a large plot about twenty feet square. The same
may be said of vines, such as cucumbers, melons, squash, etc. If the
plots are small, it is better to plant but a single variety, but in
large plots from two to four varieties may be arranged to advantage.
Usually rows of vegetables, such as carrots and beets, may be placed a
foot apart, cabbage about twice that distance, and tomatoes a little
farther apart than cabbage.
Generally speaking, plants should be placed so that when full grown they
will just touch, cover the ground completely, and thus prevent the
growth of weeds.
As soon as the young plants appear above the ground, light cultivation
with rakes and claw-hand weeders should be started, so as to keep weeds
from growing and at the same time to provide a loose surface or earth
mulch for conserving the moisture and aerating the soil. Thinning should
also be begun when the plants are quite small, but it should not all be
done at once. As the plants increase in size, the best ones should be
left and the poor ones taken out. In some cases plants thus removed may
be re-set to fill vacant places.
TREE SEEDS
Tree seeds that have been stored over winter should now be planted in
rows in a small plot. The rows should be a foot apart and the seeds
quite close together in the row. A cheese-cloth or slat shade should be
used on this plot, as the hot sun is too strong for tree seedlings when
they first come up. They should have cultivation every week and watering
in dry weather. Always water in the evening after school, or even later
when possible.
TRANSPLANTING
Pupils in this Form should have practice in transplanting, as well as in
sowing seed. For this purpose seeds should be started about the first of
April in hotbeds or window boxes, seedlings transplanted into cold
frames when two or three inches high, and then set out in the garden in
the latter part of May when danger of frost is past.
TRANSPLANTING FLOWERS AND VEGETABLES
Choose, if possible, a cool cloudy day. Water the plants thoroughly in
the hotbed or cold frame a few hours before lifting them. Lift them with
a trowel or small spade, and keep as much earth on their roots as
possible. With a transplanting trowel, make holes deep enough so that
the plant will be a little deeper in the soil than before transplanting.
Unless the soil is moist, a little water put in the hole with the plant
is beneficial. The evening is considered best for transplanting if the
weather is clear. If the sun is very hot, the plants should be shaded
for a few days until the roots become established and begin their work.
Shingles slanting over the plants from the south side and driven into
the ground to hold them in position are best. Papers held by means of
two stones also give good results. The practice of covering them with
inverted cans is not a good one, as the light is almost completely cut
off. A few holes in the can would help considerably. Care must be taken
to pack the earth firmly about the roots. Watering again twenty-four
hours after transplanting is often necessary. If the plant has a leafy
top, it is best to take off some of the leaves, as they tend to give off
water more rapidly than the roots can at first take it in.
TRANSPLANTING TREE SEEDLINGS
Nuts and other tree seeds collected the previous autumn should now be
planted in the forestry plots in rows a foot apart. As the seeds may not
all grow, they may be planted close together in the row and thinned out
the following spring if necessary. They need some shelter from the sun
the first summer. In large plots this is provided by means of a slat
covering, but in a small plot cheese-cloth tacked on strips and fastened
on corner posts is satisfactory. When a shower comes, this cheese-cloth
screen should be removed so that the rain may moisten the plot evenly.
Seedlings may be transplanted from the woods or from the forestry rows
before the leaves open out.
BUDDING
In budding, a slit like the letter T is made in the side of the young
seedling close to the ground. The bark is raised a little at the point
where the vertical slit meets the horizontal one, and a bud of desired
variety with a shield-shaped bit of bark (and perhaps a little wood)
attached to it is shoved in and the sides of the slit bound down upon
it. After the bud, or scion, has started to grow, the stock is cut off
an inch above the point where the bud was inserted. The bud then makes
rapid growth, and in two years the resulting tree is large enough to set
in its permanent place in the orchard.
CUTTINGS
Pupils in this Form should try to grow such woody plants as roses and
grapes from cuttings. Roses are frequently propagated by budding, as in
the case of apples and peaches. They may also be grown upon their own
roots or from stem cuttings. Such cuttings should be from well-matured
wood of the present year taken in the autumn and packed in moist sand
over the winter. Make the cuttings about three inches in length. The top
end should be cut off immediately above a bud and the bottom end just
below a bud, as roots seem to start more readily from a node, or bud.
Such a cutting may have three or four buds of which only the upper two
need be left. If both of these grow, the poorer one may afterwards be
removed.
These rose cuttings should then be inserted in a box of clean, moist
sand to a depth of two inches, kept in a warm room, and shaded with a
sheet of newspaper when the sun is very bright. Keep the sand moist but
not wet, and when possible have gentle bottom heat. When roots have made
some growth, transplant carefully into small flower-pots, using fairly
rich, clay loam. In a few weeks they will be ready to plant out in the
garden.
Grape cuttings should be taken late in the fall when the vines are well
matured. Such a cutting includes only two joints, the upper one being
the growing end and the lower the rooting end. They must be stored over
winter in cold, moist sand, but should not be permitted to freeze. As
soon as the ground can be prepared in the spring, set them out. They
should be placed on a slant of about forty-five degrees and covered all
but the top bud.
LEAF CUTTINGS
Some plants with large and vigorous leaves, such as many of the
begonias, may be propagated by means of leaf cuttings. Buds readily
develop from cuts made in the large veins. Take a full-grown healthy
leaf and remove the stem all but about half an inch. Make a few cuts
across the larger veins on the under side of the leaves at points where
main veins branch. Press the leaf firmly down on the top of a box of
moist sand with the under side next the sand. Keep the leaf in this
position, using small stones or little pegs pushed through the leaf into
the sand. Put the box in a warm room and do not let the sand become dry.
When roots strike into the sand and buds develop from the points where
the veins were wounded, take a sharp knife and cut out the new plant
from the old leaf and transplant it into a small flower-pot in good
soil. Sink the pot in a box of moist sand to prevent its drying out.
ROOT CUTTINGS
Such plants as "sprout from the roots" may be propagated by root
cuttings. Sections of underground stems may also come under this
heading, as in the case of horseradish cuttings. But real roots may be
used for cuttings, as in the case of the blackberry and raspberry. The
roots should be cut in pieces three or four inches long, planted in a
horizontal position, and entirely covered with two or three inches of
soil.
LAYERING
Bush fruits, such as currants and gooseberries, are frequently
propagated by stem cuttings, as in the case of roses. Another method,
which is known as layering, consists in bending one or more of the
lowest branches down against the ground, fastening it there by means of
a forked stick, and then covering it with two or three inches of earth.
The part in contact with the moist earth will send out roots, while one
or more shoots will come up. When roots and shoots have developed, the
branch is severed from the parent bush and the new plant set in its
permanent place. Strawberries exhibit a sort of natural layering.
PLANTING AND CARE OF HERBACEOUS PERENNIALS
Perennials grown from seed the previous summer should now be set in
clumps two or three feet apart in the perennial border or here and there
beside the fences or walks. The soil should be made fine and fertilized
with well-rotted manure from the compost heap before setting out the
young perennials. Dahlias and gladioli which were taken in in the autumn
should now be set out. The dahlias should be divided and only the best
roots used. Other perennials that have grown into large clumps should be
dug up, divided, and re-set in well-fertilized soil.
GARDEN STUDIES
Pupils in this Form have now had enough experience in the growing of
vegetables and flowers to allow them to make intelligent variety tests.
They should grow some of the less familiar varieties and report on the
merits of each variety tested. This, however, should not be carried on
to the exclusion of the well-known standard varieties. Let the pupils
consult the best seed catalogues available and choose for themselves
some varieties not already known to them. They should keep a systematic
record of all varieties grown and the methods used in cultivating,
fertilizing, etc. The knowledge thus gained will be of value in after
years, and the homes will also benefit by it.
BIENNIALS
The pupils should observe the second year's growth of biennials. A
special plot in the school garden should be set apart for this purpose.
Have them plant in it a turnip, a carrot, a beet, a cabbage, or any
other garden biennial saved over winter for the purpose. If desired, the
pupils might grow their own seed of these varieties. Notice (1) what
part of the plant has become enlarged with stored up food and how big it
is when planted, (2) how this part changes in size and texture as the
flowers and seeds develop, (3) in what way this extra food seems to have
been used.
WILD FLOWERS
STUDY OF THE TRILLIUM
The pupils bring the plants for the lesson. There should be a few purple
trilliums among the white, and some of the plants should have the
underground parts intact.
Discuss with the collectors their observations on where the trilliums
grow, the kind of soil, the depth of the root-stocks below the surface,
the uses of the root-stocks, insect visitors.
CLASS-ROOM LESSON
The pupils are directed to examine the plant and flowers and find out
all the means for attracting insects.
Find out why the purple trillium attracts flies and beetles, while the
white trillium attracts bees and butterflies.
Look into the top of the flower; what figure do the tips of the six
flower leaves form?
Using the names calyx and corolla, describe the circle of flower leaves
as to number, colour, and relative position.
Find the stamens and describe as to number and position; find out how
the stamens are fitted to ensure that the pollen will get upon the
visiting insects.
Find the pistil and describe its shape. How is the stigma fitted for
receiving the pollen that is carried by the insect visitors.
_To the teacher._--The trilliums attract insects by their large white
and purple flowers, which are held up by their long stalks high above
the three broad leaves. The strong carrion-like odour of the purple
trillium is attractive to flies and beetles, while bees and butterflies
find the fragrance of the white trillium more to their liking.
The root-stock serves as a buried store of food to tide the plant over
the drought of late summer and the severe cold of winter. The
well-stocked cellar also explains the flourishing condition of the plant
in early spring. The six stamens stand on close guard around the pistil,
and insects forcing their way to the nectaries are well peppered with
pollen.
Continue the observation work by means of field exercises such as the
following:
What change takes place in the colour of the white trillium as it grows
old?
Find the ripened seed pods of the trillium, open them, count the number
of chambers, and examine the seeds.
Do trilliums grow from the same root-stock year after year?
As correlations, represent the trillium in colour and design an
embroidery pattern based on it.
Lessons similar to that on the trillium may be based on adder's tongue,
Indian turnip, Dutchman's breeches, violet, and clover.
ADAPTATIONS OF ANIMALS
It is not considered necessary to go outside the list of ordinary
animals to find sufficient illustrations of adaptations, and it is
recommended that attention be given to these during the study of animals
prescribed for the regular Course. This may be supplemented by an
occasional review of adaptive features for the purpose of emphasizing
the general fitness of animals for their varied habits and surroundings.
Care must be taken lest the attempt to explain structures by adaptation
be carried to an extreme, for it is impossible to account for all the
variations in animal forms.
The following list contains a few of the many examples of adaptations to
be met with in the Course prescribed for Forms II and III.
The horse walks and runs on the tips of its toes; this gives greater
speed.
Wild animals of the cow and deer kind can swallow their food hastily so
that they may retire to a safe retreat; there they regurgitate the food
and chew it. The domesticated animal retains this habit, though there is
no longer a need for it.
The wood-hare's fur is brown in summer, hence its enemies cannot see it
against the brown grass and moss; in winter its colour is white, which,
against the snow, is a protective colour.
The porcupine is very slow, but its colour and shape make it almost
impossible to distinguish from a knot on a log. Its quills form an
effective protection when it is discovered.
The feet of the squirrel are adapted for climbing and its teeth for
gnawing wood and for opening nuts. The tail serves as a balancing pole
for leaping from tree to tree and in winter it acts as a protection from
cold.
The earthworm's shape and movements are suited to its habits of
burrowing through the soil. Its habits of swallowing the soil fit it for
burrowing and for obtaining its food at the same time.
Many insect larvae, as the tomato worm and the cabbage-worm, are of the
same colour as the plants on which they feed, and this enables them to
escape detection by birds.
The larvae of dragon-flies and May-flies breathe in water by means of
gills very much as fishes do, but the adult forms are suited for
breathing in air.
Female birds are usually dull gray or mottled, so that their colours
blend with their surroundings while they are nesting, and hence they do
not attract the notice of their enemies.
Birds that swim have webbed feet, which act as oars for pushing them
through the water. Their feathers are compact and soft for warmth, and
these properties, together with oil on their surfaces, make them
waterproof.
The tongue of the woodpecker is long, spear-shaped, and sticky; hence it
is adapted for catching insects in the holes pecked into the wood.
The tongue of the toad is fastened at the front end, so that a flap can
be shot out for more than an inch in front of the animal, thus enabling
it to catch insects on its sticky surface.
The toes of the frog are webbed to make them more serviceable in
swimming.
The tail of the musk-rat is strong and broad like the blade of an oar
and serves the same purpose as an oar.
The tail of the fish is more serviceable for swimming than legs would
be.
BIRD TYPES
WOODPECKERS
Woodpeckers are easily distinguished from other birds by their habit of
perching in a vertical position on the trunks of trees with the tips of
their tails pressed against the bark. While in this position, they tap
upon the tree with their sharp, pointed beaks.
THE DOWNY WOODPECKER
Learn to recognize the smallest of our woodpeckers, the Downy. Winter or
summer it may be found among the apple trees and shade trees, a tiny
black and white bird little bigger than a wren.
OBSERVATIONS
I
Why is "checkerboard" a good name for this bird?
Are there any distinct lines of white?
Are there any patches of red?
Do its movements reveal energy or listlessness?
How does it move up a tree trunk?
How does it move down a tree trunk?
Find out how it can hold so firmly to the trunk.
Does it use its sharp beak as a drill or as a pick?
_To the teacher._--The downy is spotted black and white, with barred
wings and a white line down the centre of the back. A bright scarlet
crown is the colour distinction of the male. This little bird is the
embodiment of energy and perseverance. It hops nimbly up the trunk,
tapping here and there with its beak, and then listening for the
movements of the disturbed wood-borers. If it wishes to descend, it
wastes no time in turning around, but hops backward down the trunk, or
jumps off and flies down.
II
Examine an apple tree upon which a downy has been at work and find out
what it was doing there.
Do you find the birds in pairs during winter? During summer? Distinguish
the male from the female.
Tie a beef bone with scraps of meat adhering to it to a tree. What birds
come to it?
Find the nest of the downy and describe the nest and the eggs.
Do the holes made by the downy injure the trees?
Why should the downy be welcomed in our orchards?
Describe the sounds made by the birds.
_To the teacher._--Discuss the pupils' answers to the above problems in
the class lesson, using a picture of a woodpecker to illustrate the
features of the bird that adapt it for its habits. Examples: the
straight, sharp beak suited for drilling; the two backward, projecting
toes for perching; the spines on the tips of the tail feathers to act as
a prop.
The downy woodpecker is very useful in the orchard, because it destroys
great numbers of larvae of the tussock-moth and other insects. The holes
made in the bark have never been found to injure the trees. The nest is
made in a hollow tree, the entrance to it being almost perfectly round
and about one and one-quarter inches in diameter.
The downy woodpecker has a very unmusical voice, but fortunately he is
aware of this deficiency, and his only attempt at music is drumming with
his beak upon a hollow limb or tree.
The hairy woodpecker, redheaded woodpecker, flicker, and yellow-bellied
woodpecker (sapsucker) are other varieties which visit the orchards and
are suitable for lessons similar to these on the downy woodpecker. They
are all beneficial birds.
FLYCATCHERS
Members common to this class are: king-bird; house-phoebe, wood-phoebe,
or pewee; whip-poor-will; least fly-catcher; giant fly-catcher.
Direct the observations of the pupils to the following type features:
Brownish or grayish colours; fringe of long bristles around the mouth
(explain their use); whistling notes, varying with the different members
of the family; habit of jumping from the perch, catching an insect while
on the wing, and returning to the spot from which the flight began;
nests, chiefly of mud built in a protected place, as under a bridge,
ledge of rock, or projecting log.
WRENS
The house wren may be studied as a type. Observe its brownish colour,
faintly mottled; its small size and energetic movements, its tail
turned nearly vertically upward. Observe and report on other wrens,
noting any differences.
CABBAGE-BUTTERFLY
Have a plant of wild mustard or a cabbage growing in a pot. In June,
have the pupils, by means of the insect net, catch a number of the white
butterflies, the adults of the cabbage-worm.
Place the butterflies in jars or bottles and observe them. Make drawings
of them.
Direct the attention of the pupils to the difference between the wings
of the male and those of the female. The former has only one dark spot
on the front wing, while the female has two spots on this wing.
Release the males and put the females in a vivarium with the potted
plant. (A pasteboard box, with a large piece cut out and the opening
covered with gauze, makes a good substitute for a vivarium in this
case.)
Observe the laying of the eggs. How many are placed at one spot? How are
the eggs protected? The eggs may be gathered from the cabbage plants in
the garden.
Observe and record the hatching of the tiny worm, its feeding, growth,
forming of chrysalis, development into adult.
Frequently little yellow silken cocoons are found in vivaria where
cabbage-worms are kept; these are cocoons of a parasite (braconid) that
infests the worm.
Because of the ease with which the cabbage-butterfly may be obtained and
the rapidity of its development in the various stages, it is very
suitable as a type for the study of metamorphosis.
The sulphur, or puddler (called by the latter name because of its habit
of settling in groups around the edges of the water holes), is also a
suitable type. The larvae in this case must be fed on clover.
THE TUSSOCK-MOTH
Begin the study of this insect in June and July by observing the larvae
feeding on the foliage of the horse-chestnut and other shade trees, and
direct attention to their destructiveness.
In observing the larvae, note the size, movements, legs, colour, coral
red head, tufts of hair on the back, and the three long plumes.
Watch the birds among the trees to discover whether they eat the larvae.
Of what use are the tufts of hair? Do the larvae feed by biting or by
sucking? Describe the damage done by the larvae.
Collect a number of these larvae and place them in the vivarium with some
twigs of horse-chestnut. Observe the spinning of the cocoon and, about
two weeks later, look for the emergence of the adult moths.
Observe the two kinds of insects. Describe each. Are there any
differences in the cocoons from which they emerge?
Which form of insect places the egg mass and is therefore the female?
Note the number and shape of the eggs and how they are protected.
The female moths have no wings and do not move far from the cocoons from
which they emerge, while the males have the power of flight.
As outdoor work, look for the egg masses on trees and fences and devise
means of combating the tussock-moth.
Gathering and destroying the egg masses during the winter is found to be
fairly effective in checking these insects. Since the cocoons
frequently contain parasites that prey upon the larvae, it is advisable
that only the cocoons that have egg masses attached to them should be
destroyed; the others are harmless and may contain the useful parasites.
The egg masses may be kept over winter in a box in a cool place, and the
hatching of the tiny larvae and their subsequent rapid growth observed.
POTATO BEETLE
The eggs of this beetle may be found in early summer in clusters on the
under surfaces of the leaves of potato plants.
EGG.--Observe the size, colour, shape, position, and number in a
cluster; appearance of head from outer end after a week.
LARVA.--Observe the colour, shape, head, legs, voracious appetite,
movements, rapid growth, destructiveness.
PUPA.--Observe the larvae disappear from the plants; a search underground
reveals the resting stage, or pupae. After ten days, the adult beetles
emerge.
ADULT.--Observe the colour, the hard shell covering the head; the hard
outer wings and membraneous inner wings; the hard shell on the under
surface of the body; the feelers, and legs.
Why will spraying with a poison, such as paris-green, kill these
insects?
REFERENCES
Dearness: _How to Teach the Nature Study Course Stories in Agriculture,
Bulletin No. 124._
FISH
The Nature Study lessons must be based upon observations of the living
fish, preferably in May or June, September or October. The best place
for this is on the bank of a clear stream from which it is possible to
observe the fish in their natural environment. Here their life
activities, their struggles, their conquests, and silent tragedies are
enacted before the eyes of the observer. Many observations may be made
in this way which will create a life-long interest in these reticent,
yet active creatures. Since this method of study is practicable in but
few cases, the study of the living fish in the aquarium is the best
available substitute.
The teacher or the boys of the class can catch a few fish of three or
four inches in length and carry them in a jar of water to the aquarium.
Minnows, chub, perch, catfish, or other common forms will do.
OBSERVATIONS
I
The general shape, and the suitability of the shape for swimming.
The surface of the body and the protection it affords. Note the scales
and the slime, the latter a protection against the growth of fungi, etc.
The gills--two openings behind the flaps at the rear of the head. The
colours, and their value in concealing the fish. The dark upper surface
makes it inconspicuous from above; the light under surface blends with
the shadow and dims it.
The divisions of the body--head, trunk, and tail.
Movements of the fish and the part that the various fins play in these
movements.
Note that the broad tail fin is the most useful fin for locomotion, the
others act as balancers or as brakes, or for causing currents of water
near the gills. Observe the movements of the pair of fins nearest the
gills, the movements of the mouth, and the currents of water entering
the mouth and passing through the gill slits. When a fish is kept in a
very small quantity of water, observe the effect produced on the
movements of the mouth and gill flaps. What are the uses of these
movements? The pupils will thus discover the nature of the respiration
of the fish. Why do fish die if many are kept in a jar of water?
II
By supplying various foods learn what kinds are preferred. Find in the
actions or habits of the living fish evidences of a sense of smell, of
sight, of hearing, and of taste.
Nearly all the following points of detailed study can be observed from
the living fish: shape; size; tongue; teeth; gill slits leading from the
mouth to the gills; nostrils, number and position; eyes, absence of
eyelids; fins, size, build; the arrangement of the scales.
PROBLEMS
Why does the fish require a large mouth?
How are the eyes protected? Compare the shape of the eye with the shape
of the eye of a land animal.
Why are there no openings from the surface directly into the ears? Show
the suitability of the fins as organs of locomotion in water.
REFERENCES
Silcox and Stevenson: _Modern Nature Study_
Nash: _Fishes of Ontario_ (from Department of Education, free)
Kellogg: _Elementary Zoology_