Tag Archives: gardening with kids

Gardening Wizardry for Kids – L. Patricia Kite

Gardening Wizardry for Kids: Green Thumb Magic for the Great Indoors is a fun book for children and parents alike. Teachers will also find lots of fun growing experiments and food lore they can use in their classrooms. The legends and histories behind different foods are fascinating. Did you know that in the Middle Ages magicians put celery seeds in their shoes, hoping it would help them fly? Or that there are more pictures of onions on Ancient Egyptian tombs than any other plant? Or that the soldiers inside the Trojan horse ate carrots before getting in the horse to … Continue reading →

Forcing Forsythia – an Early Taste of Spring

We had a tease of spring day yesterday. Temperatures almost reached 70 degrees! We threw open the windows to air out the house, hung out sheets on the clothesline, and soaked up some sun and fresh air. Today we had snow and wind chills of 15 degrees. I know spring is happening in other areas of the country, but in case you are anxious for signs of spring like me and my family, then here is an idea to bring in the season a bit early. If you have a forsythia bush, you can have a flowers a few weeks … Continue reading →

Starting Seeds

This morning we celebrated spring in one of my favorite ways. We started seeds. Nothing fancy, just cilantro, basil, morning glories and moon flowers. The cilantro and basil are for summer cooking, for salsa and pesto. And the flowers are for my gazebo. I have visions of being greeted in the morning by the sweet fragrance of morning glories trailing up the sides – and at night being treated to the soft smells of moon flowers. I hope the flowers sprout and grow. Gardening in Colorado is a challenge. We have a short growing season with an average last frost … Continue reading →

Kids and Simple Gardening

Even if you don’t have a lot of space, indoors or out, you and your kids can put together a small container garden. Even if you just do one or two plants, your kids are likely to think it’s pretty cool. Herb Gardening You can get your kids started with a small herb garden. It isn’t difficult and your kids will have fun with it. Another good thing about growing herbs is that they do not usually take long to begin sprouting. Your kids will get to see some results before too long, so herb gardening may keep their interest … Continue reading →

Bulb forcing

This time of year, I’m always anxious to see some green growing things. Minus all the Christmas decorations, the house looks drab. And the world out my window is snow covered. We’ve had a year’s worth of snow this month here in Colorado. All that isn’t white with snow is brown and barren. Hurray for bulb forcing! It’s a bit of green and spring beauty for me. It’s a great science lesson for my kids. Many stores have bulb kits on clearance this time of year. So I pick out a few. I like delicate paper-whites, or daffodils (narcissus). Amaryllis … Continue reading →