Teaching kids about food, starting with a seed
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Yesterday when we were at Target, our 5-year-old pointed to a product and said, “Mommy, why does the TV tell me to buy that?” I floundered trying to explain to him the point of advertising. Which got me thinking how important it was that he understood what real food was so he could make informed decisions down the road. Which renewed my excitement about the garden we’ll plant this summer. What better place to start teaching where real food comes from than with a seed?
So, it’s time to order your seeds, if you haven’t already (we’re behind the 8 ball once again). But first, figure out what zone you’re in (zone 3 for us) to determine what grows in your neck of the woods. We’re ordering organic seeds that aren’t genetically modified or treated with pesticides.
Here’s what’s we’ve selected for our list: tomatoes, peas, carrots, cucumbers, beets, broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, lettuce, and pepper. What’s on yours?
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So, you are obviously pretty knowledgeable about the whole gardening thing. I realize I could look this up on my own, but I’d rather ask you. What can you plant in a yard (vegetable wise) that is almost completely covered in shade for most of the day? (We’ve got HUGE trees in our back yard and we’re not allowed to plant veg. gardens in the front.)
Have you thought about taking your kids out to a farm so they can see where their meat and milk come from? That might be something to do the next time you come back east.
It’s a great idea! Kids love that stuff. I wish I was better at gardening myself
Hi momromp,
My garden space is heavily shaded and through trial and error, I have found that zucchini and cucumbers grow best, and tomatoes do OK as well. With zucchini, you need a lot of space. The plant will get huge and will crowd out everything in its path, so plan for that. With cukes, they grow like a vine and can choke neighbors. It’s good to grow them with a slanted board behind so they can trail up the board, or a trellis, or a basket around them. Put the tomatoes out closer to the sun and leave good space between them and cukes or zucchini–and make sure to put a basket around them so they don’t fall over. If you want to do herbs, oregano and sage grow well in shade–and even though they are supposed to be annuals up here, mine have come back every spring! Oh and my kids’ favorite–raspberries! They grow stunningly well in the shade. But you have to be vigilent about keeping them from spreading and pruning in the fall, or they create a serious mess. The beauty of raspberries is they give you two crops, one in early summer and one in early fall. The kids love to go outside and pick them as a treat while they are playing.
You can also grow some great stuff in container gardens in your sunny areas where you are not allowed to have an actual garden. Tomatoes look so pretty in a nice pot, as do herbs. Nobody will complain.
OK, I’ve rambled enough. Good luck!
New theme….Like. Lots. My girls have been wanting to plant seeds from oranges and lemons since DEcember….finally convinced them to wait till the spring!
Tomatoes for sure. And padron peppers. It’s raining here, so I long for spring when I can start planting all of that.
Thank you for reminding me–we need to start prepping the small raised bed garden we stared last year–in fact, we need to add a new bed! It was fabulous for the kids and us to see their excitement. My son literally, went outside to eat parsley–this from the boy who needs to scream before he eats anything