DIY Homeschooler

The Garden of the Earth: A Little Book on Plant-Life, Plant-Growth, and the Ways and Uses of Plants is another title available by Agnes Giberne.

The book reminds one of taking a walk.

The authoress gracefully draws aside the veil and shows the wind, the bees, and the flowers at play. The reader is encouraged to step among them, and to look for himself.

Any one who had been content with the usual superficial observation of Nature, and who is hereby introduced into an intimate acquaintance with the game and with its players, will have to thank this book for a new and very charming friendship with the animated but previously unnoticed world around him.

From the Foreword

Published by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge in 1921, this public domain title covers:

• Different types of plants.
• The way plants grow.
• The parts of a plant.
• The parts of a flower.
• Mushrooms.
• Ferns.
• Classes of plants.
• Soil.
• Worms.
• Roots & stems.
• Sap.
• Leaves.
• The role of sunlight.
• Bread.
• Flowers.
• How seeds grow.
• Pollen and pollination.
• Plant health.

Interestingly, the author points these things out as we “walk” through the plant world by comparing and contrasting them one with another. For example, in the roots and stems section we look at things growing up vs. growing down.

There are hand-drawn illustrations throughout. These can be copied into a notebook. The student can also add illustrations of his own finds as he walks through his own local plant world.

In addition, you’ll find quotations at the end of each chapter. Older students can copy these into a notebook.

Perfect book for this time of year. An interesting, real-life study of plants!

Free eBook

• Read online
• PDF
• EPUB (convert to Kindle)

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Additional Resources

Gardening: A Unit Study
Gardening has largely shifted its status from survival skill to popular pastime. Great way to learn about plants!

The Family Garden Journal
The Family Garden Journal: A Keepsake of Daily Plans, Observations, and Harvests is a family notebooking keepsake! Read our full review.

Soil: A Unit Study
Soil is a complex ecosystem, a place where geology, chemistry, and biology (along with a few other sciences) meet. Unit resources.