SCHOOL GARDEN COMPETITIONS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9673, 22 December 1909, Page 3

SCHOOL GARDEN COMPETITIONS.

A WIN *'OR RONGOKOKAKO. The school garden competitions which were judged last wees, and the results of which ate now available, have demonstrated one thing at least, that is, that the boys, assisted bv their teachers, are able to do soma really good work—work, in iact, which in many cases will prove an object lejson to some of our farmers. Points as under:— General appearance of plot, stright- , ness of rows, freedom from weeds, condition of soil, maximum 30 points; quality and quantity of vegetables, maximum 20 points; adverse circucn- ! stances —i.e., poorness of soil, absence of water, exposed situation, etc. —maximum allowed, 10 points;, educational value of work done, maximum 30 pomts; condition of tool?,, maximum 10 points. The competitions were for the best garden and the best individual plot. Appended are the results:— j Best garden—First, Ron- j gokokako, 90points;second, j Kopuaranga, 84 points; | third, Newman, 80 points. Best individual plot—First and third, Kopuaranga, 78 and 76 points; second, Rongokokako, 77 points. It will be noted that there i& not a very wide margin between the first and third schools, a fact that sneaks

well both for teachers and pupils. The following are, the judges' remarks:— RONGOKOKAKO. The garden showed great progress; an additional area having been added for purely experimental purposes, particularly for the growing of root crops for dairy herds, similar crops having proved a failure when grown by local farmers. The educational value of the work done was good, and.the garden was a well cultivated one. particularly with regard to the growing of grasses for purposes of g pasture, the poundage of seed and manures having been worked out from an average basis. The boys' note book showed the various growths from germination to the date of judging, while a full record had been kept of the amount and cost of the saeds and manures, the use and effects of the fertilisers on the root crops and grasses, etc. This being a school situated in open country, and exposed to the winds, the need for shelter trees was apparent, and a special feature of the garden was the growing of shelter trees from seed, which might form a valuable object lesson to surrounding settlers. There were twenty -two plots in the garden. With regard to the best individual plot, for which this school took second place, the appearance of the plot was similar in some respects to that of the winning plot at the Kopuaranga Schooi. It was, however, not quite up to the standard of the latter, ai d lost points on general appearance, quality and quantity. The educational value of the work was of a high order, the schoulmaster having had to contend with the difficulty of boys leaving school in the midst of the growing season. A perfect book system dealing with horticulture and agriculture had been kept. The absence of water, and adverse circumstances, kept this school in a rather backward state, five points being allowed in consequence. KOPUAKANGA. The experi with cereals were particularly striking, various mixtures of chemical manures having been used. The boys' notebooks were well kept and they appeared to have a fair knowledge of chemistry, especially, regarding the contents of the various fertilisers used. Ground nlans were also kept for purposes of reference for the rotation of crops, while the cost of production, too, was shown, particularly the cost of the highly oncentrated fertilisers. Grass plot experiments were also carried out, but suffered somewhat owing to the scarcity of water. Great care had been taken in sticking the peas, beans, tomatoes and plants likely to be affected by whi«h break right across the garden owing to its exposed postion. There were eighteen plots all told, and a similar area for experimental purposes. This school took first and third place for best individual garden-plot. The winning plot showed that the boys had been very diligent. The absence of weeds, general appearance, straightness of rows, and condition of soil were almost perfect, ihe quality and quantity of vegetables were very good, which applied to all the plots in the garden. The greater care, however, and neatness displayed in the winning plot, and the intelligence shown in keeping the notebooks gave it the premier position. The fact that there were only two points between the first and

third plots will show that the garden was of a very high order. NEWMAN. This garden was rather large, but many useful experiments were being carried out. The absence of the boys' notebooks detracted considerably from the value of the experiments, as only by keeping notes can they keep in touch with the various experiments that are being carried out. A pleasing feature of this garden was the introduction of orchard trees, each of which would be grafted at a later date. A scheme of green manuring was being carried out to prove its value on fruit fcreas, ppas being the plants grown for the purpose. The whole garden showed careful cultivation, and settlors might profit by an inspection of it. The absence of water and the exposed situation of the garden woul 1 account for its backward state, and the maximum points (10) were allowed. TAOEKU. ! Owing to the fact of a change of masters the garden at this school was in a rather backward condition. The work, however, was being carried out along right lines, but owing to . a number of details which the master had not had a chance of rectifying Idue to the lateness of the season, the school was not given a place. KAIPARORO. The garden here was both nea 1 ; arid beautiful. It was handicapped, however, by the fact that only a fjw boys were attending the school, the girls not taking as full an interest in (he various experiments "that were being carried out as the boys. As a matter of fact, they did not intend 10 compete, and were surpris d at the arrival of the judges. Thy plots were well kept, but could not compare with the others that had been worked on a scientific basis. CARE OP THE TOOLS. In every case the tools used in the preparation cf the plots were kept in excellent order by the hoys. They had been carefully cleaned, oiled and stored, each boy having his own «et and being held responsible for its caire. The boys at the Rongokokako School were awarded ten points for thi3 ■ branch of the competitions, the boys of the Kopuar anga School eight points, and the boys of the Newman School six points. This is a somewhat important matter, as it fosters the idea of careful Usage of the fram implements, thereby effecting a considerable saving in the cost of replacing them as would be necessary if they were continually neglected. Messrs A. B. Woods, agricultural chemist to Messrs J. D. Cruickshank and Co., and H. Holmes, of Matahiwi, acted as judges. I