Hello all
my B.F. has a six yr old that wants me to pick her out some things to grow this spring.
I am new to a lot of plants and don't know what would be easy and quick to grow for her.
Help what do you think?
I need some input from some Gardeners that know these things.
Thank You!
Happy Gardening!
~Robbie~
CLOSED: what is good for a 6 yr old to grow?
bulbs are always good as they will come up most of the time and bloom. like crocuses. and you can buy them right now. i love bulbs easy and will bloom and you can buy them right now.
a good winter thing is to force a hyacinth inside. they now come with their containers at walmart. you can see the roots growing. cool for kids to watch.
my daughter at that age in school did a lima bean. annual flower seeds are good as the child wont have to wait till the following season to see it bloom.
I have two daughters, who are now grown, but when they were small, they each had their own section in the garden where they grew daylilies. They had a lot of fun and even won some blue ribbons on them at our local daylily show. It was a good experience for them.
Food! My 12 yr old DD still prefers veggies to flowers. All plants are secondary to tomatoes lol. Sunflowers-big ones. Touch-me -nots are fun. Morning glories. Oh heck, about anything will do as long as it is "theirs."
Thank You I gave her a morning glory vine this past spring she loved it.
every time i would come over we had to go look at her plant before i could go in the house.
I just loved that and now i am thinking that she can handle more than just one thing.
She has asked for flowers that you can eat as well.
And i don't know that for sure.
I am new to this only been doing it for 10 yrs and i only fooled with morning glory vines or vines of any kind.
I didnt want to grow anything else till i came here.
Now i need to know what flowers are safe to eat.
HELP!
Thank You!
Happy Gardening!
~Robbie~
Healthmaster Carrots because they are red instead of orange on the outside! Sunflowers, too, because they grow so tall! I think kids get a sense of awe in growing something bigger than themselves! Flower seed mixes because it's a surprise to see what comes up.
For edible flowers-nasturtiums! All parts are edible. Eat young leaves and flowers or they get kind of radishy tasting. Flowers and leaves are also pretty frozen in a bowl of ice for punch or to rest another bowl on that you want too keep cool. Nasties come in lots of pretty colors.
Something I saw in a magazine once was a Scarlet Runner Bean 'tent.' Take bamboo or other material ^ stick them in the ground at an angel and tie them together at the tops to make a 'tent' - tunnel - can't think of a good descriptive word. Anyway, grow Scarlet Runners or other types of beans - morning glories too at the bottom and they will cover the tent and fill it in! Great place to play and/or hide. Could also grow those sunflowers in a circle to make another hiding play area.
I agree with frogsrus - edible gardening is great because you not only get the joy of growing, but you get a treat at the end! And it's good for Mom's because kids to try more veggies when they grow them themselves!
Another fun thing is Chinese Lanterns! They are so pretty and ornamental, and you can use them for crafts and projects, or you can peel them back and eat the little berry inside. I have a few pods leftover from this year's crop if you would like me to send some. Can also toss in a few "fun" seeds if you'd like!
Most kids love to grow watermelons or pumpkins.
RH I just got a bunch of morning glory seeds in trades with a few of these members and the darn things are sprouting before I can cover them with dirt. They would be awesome for a young child to grow, just don't let them eat the seeds, they can be poisonous I believe. Make sure it is completely supervised. Anyhow, I put them on moist soil and some were already putting down a root in less than 24 hours, meaning that you can actually watch how they grow.
Mark
Marigolds! LOL My kids love to grow them. My six year old son grew marigolds, tomatoes, and salvias :-D
My kids loved growing snow peas, regular peas and Scarlet runner beans-I can't remember any of the peas making it to the table, lol!!
Caron - That's a VERY good testimonial!
It funny-they thought they had to hide the fact that they were snitching the very things they had planted. Like I would never notice or something???? Hahahaha...never said a word about it...if this was their idea about pulling the wool over old Mom's eyes then saying anything would have just ruined their fun. So-o-o-o innocent at that age!!
We had a tepee covered with grapevines when I was a kid but any climber would do. How about those peas with some nasties for flowers? Makes a nice place to sit and munch on a summers day. It just needs to be big enough for a child or two and a dog to sit in.
I was going to say Scarlet Runner Beans, because they grow so fast, and they are so pretty!
You have a lot of good ideas here...
oh boy you have all given me such good ideas for her garden.
And thank you squee i will take you up on your offer of Chinese Lanterns what would you like in trade?
I have all the rest of the things that were talked about I think all but the Health master carrots.
I am at her house just as much as i am at home so it will be supervised.
We had a talk about not eating seeds already.
I have tried to teach her the little things she needs to do .
I got her a watering can and a Little spade and little fork rake and she knows not to do any gardening unless i or mom are with her.
She has taken to it well and loves it.
OK the one thing I'm not sure of is the Health master red carrots i have never seen any so were do i get some?
Anyone got any i can trade for?
Thank You All !
Happy Gardening!
~Robbie~
I don't have the healthmaster, but I think I may have some different colored ones. I'm just a kid at heart, so I tend to buy all the oddball stiff. I have a wonderful little pepper plant that only grows about a foot tall and grows tons of sweet cherry peppers, about the size of marbles! You can start those indoors now. I'll put together a fun little package.
Does she have any pets?
Healthmaster Carrots database link: http://davesgarden.com/pdb/go/66751/index.html
Healthmaster Carrot seeds are available through Thompson & Morgan. I found them in the store in a Thompson & Morgan display. Their website is www.thompson-morgan.com
My daughter loved them. We had carrot trials this year. We planted 3 kinds of carrots and then compared how they grew, their size, and which one tasted best. She is older though, 13, so our kid gardening has advanced to taste tests. These were the winner.
You could have her grow some garden balsamina (touch me nots) Johnny jump up violas that will come back every year in different places. They could be planted now for a spring show in your area.
Also some daffoldil bulbs will surprise her in early spring. Star gazer lily is real easy to grow from bulbs and looks very pretty.
You can look at Lowe's for these now. Most bulbs are able to be planted now and will flower the first year.
Nasurtiums are edible flowers as are the violas. Cosmos bipinnata or sulpherous are easy to grow from seed.
I would stress to her that some flowers are not edible and can harm you.
Sequee: thank you so much she will love them i know she will.
Songbird:thank you for the link i will get her some of those also.
Windy:thank you for reminding me about Johnny jump-ups she will love that and i have some so she gets them.
she was here last night and i showed her how everyone was helping me to find just the right things for her to grow .
she was so excited she was dancing around singing i will have a flower garden from dg.
it was so cute i wish you could have seen her.
She said she wants one of every thing we talked about.LOL
I will have a fun time getting it all up for her.
Thank You All So Much!
Happy Gardening!
~Robbie~
Hey Robbie....
My Daughter's all time favorites are:
Giant Sunflowers (we leave some for the birds, and prepare some for her!)
Pumpkins (If you carve her name on the shell when the pumpkin is small it will make a "tatoo"! After making Jack-O-Lanterns we cook the seeds together!)
Giant Allium (the flowers grow taller than she is! Bulbs should be available now)
You might try getting her a large terra cotta herb pot, she can plant different flowers in each hole.....or Strawberries....another favorite!
Have fun!
Well that certainly is motivating! Good for her (you!).
I just wish my 15 yr old had a little interest.
She thinks its all too much.
I was the same way except for Granny's Morning Glory's.
I remember loving them from the age of 3 or 4.
I still have some of her seed and plant 1 or 2 every year.
oh well the bug might bite her when she is older.
For now I am happy to teach Brit.
OH and a pumpkin with her name on it will be a great one for her she will love it.
Thanks you guy's.
~Robbie~
My 6 year old loves love-in-a-puff and I can send you some if you like. just email me your address.
I used to like growing Borage.......flowers can be frozen in water in ice cube trays. Has a neat story to go with it too: http://davesgarden.com/pdb/go/281/index.html
In your zone I would dead head it to keep it from self seeding too much tho.
Equilibrium
Nov 26, 2004
Here's an idea you might like-
We purchased a jumbo container of cheezlets or the Sam's Club Equivalent. The container was the size of a small barrel and it was clear plastic. We cleaned it out and had the kids place small pebbles at the bottom. Then they added 3" of soil. From there, they planted basic seed of varying mature heights. We added a little interest by picking up a few plants from Frank's Nursery and Crafts for about $1 a piece and little decorative frogs and snails from PetSmart just for aesthetics. The kids watered them with the spray nozzel to the kitchen sink. We then had the boys drill a few air holes in the lids and they screwed it in place and we put them in a sunny spot. They did very well and the basil and catgrass seed planted inside soon grew over the little ceramic figurines so the kids had a baseline to judge their success. This is just an idea considering the time of year it is and all and you probably aren't in a position to plant anything outside and a terrarium might just whet their appetites for this coming spring.
As far a spring, mine liked basic tomato plants. They loved to go out and eat them right off the plants.
Wow thanks more good ideas.
Britt could not contain her self yesterday when i showed her the seed box for the spring.
I Love too see her do her little dance and she will do it every time.:}
Thank You all for all the good ideas.
Happy Gardening!
Robbie
Great link! Thanks!!!
Yes, carrots are fun and they are more fun when you allow them to go to seed and gather tons of seeds. Lettuce is also fun and the same when you allow it to go to seed.
One thing I think children would love to grow would be mammoth sunflowers and you can grow several greenbeans next to the sunflower so the greenbeans climb it and are easy to collect the greenbeans and eat right out of the garden.
And when the sunflower is ripe allow to dry on the stalk and dry, then seperate the seeds into something. They are fabulous to eat raw, they have more vitamins and taste much better than roasted and salted.
Then there are cherry tomatoes, they can be eaten right of the vine and are lots of fun.....
I met a woman who grew the sunflowers with the tomatoe vines; she had to tie them together. The tomatoes were for her and the sunflowers were for her birds.....the beans and tomatoes are great combinations for the sunflower.
I started my kids off with peppermint, thyme, coleus and marigolds. We made tea from the peppermint which we would drink while I read to them and put dried thyme with mint into old socks which I would sew shut and have them keep in their sock drawers. The coleus was a wonderfully colourful plant that my son adored and my daughter loved the marigolds because" they matched her hair". Be careful with plants that you haven't researched though. Morning glory contains a hallucinogenic compound that can be very dangerous. That is why the seed companies coat the seeds with strycnine. Vegetables are always a good choice and easily started in the window during winter months. A styrifoam egg container with a clear storage bag over it makes a great little "greenhouse" for seeds. If you are starting the seeds now, I would suggest pansies and violas as well as snapdragons( they have those "mouths" kids play with) or primulas- Bagpypr
This message was edited Nov 27, 2004 10:49 PM
Thank you all for the links and for the info on what plants are good for Britt to grow you have given us so many great ideas.
Her garden will be so nice we are starting her seeds in peat pots so she gets the full process.
She told her teacher when they were making the flowers for Thanksgiving day that.
{"the flowers should have been grown from seed instead of bought from the store,shows more love that way!"}LOL We loved it when the Teacher told us she put her little hands on her hips and said this to me.
Then turned and sat down with a humph!LOL
I think we have a little gardener with a big attitude.hehehe
We made our little monster and we love it.
She is joining 4-H and wants to grow something for the fair next year.
She saw us for the first time this past year at the fair with our entry's and knows she can get a ribbon also.
Thank You all for all of the Great ideas and for the seed you have shared with us.
She is going to have a Great little garden next year and we will get pics for you all to see.
Happy Gardening!
Robbie
ZINNIAS!!!
lots of color, repeat bloomer, many sizes and shapes and best of all they grow fast.
indoors or out.
the perfect childs flower :))