Gardening With My Daughter

So I decided with the economy, price of fresh food, and the great taste of the farm’s produce that I would like to try a couple garden plants myself. Right now though we live in the city and do not have a backyard conducive to a “garden.” I told my husband that I would like to build a raised garden bed against the house someday soon… but for now I will improvise. By gardening with pots, this would allow us to have some plants until we are able to build our full-out garden.

Maddie has liked plants since she was very little. They have always caught her eye. Whenever she spotted some flowers, and many times just a plant, she would stop and smell all of them saying she wanted to “buy it flower.” So one day we went to the store together and started picking out plants and flowers. We bought a tomato plant, a strawberry plant, and a lavender plant. This year they had plants in new pots that I hadn’t seen or noticed before. It was a soft biodegradable pot that was actually good for the plant. When you are planting them you just tear up the bottom of the pot a little bit and plant it right in the dirt with the pot still on. No waste, very cool.

We went home and began placing our plants in my pots, gardening as mother and daughter.

It is very special to share moments like that with your child, even if they are making a mess everywhere with the potting soil.

We put the strawberries in a hanging basket and waited for them to grow. The tomato went in a pot as well as the lavender.

After a few weeks we began to see flowers and then little buds of fruit. Maddie was very excited watching this process and loved to help water them with her little elephant watering can. Finally we had ripe strawberries that were warm and sweet. Still waiting on the tomatoes though, we checked them everyday. After a few more weeks we had an orange-red tomato that needed a couple more days at least. As I was turned around watering the hanging basket of berries I hear Maddie say “red, see, red mato.”

I turned back around and she was holding it in her hand, all I could do was laugh.

She had been anxious to get to pick that thing and knew it had to be a reddish color. We let it ripen on the counter for a few days and and then added it to our spaghetti dinner, it was dellicious.

Our lavender now has a sprig of flower on it after many weeks, but I love to look out my bedroom door onto the patio and see all these blooming plants. I hope for many more additions next year.

There are many things you can do with the fruits of your labor. One thing I did, was take some lavender from the farm (mine is not yet ripe) and I mixed it with sea salt and peppercorn into a grinder. It is a wonderful smelling combination that is surprisingly tasty too.

So, which containers for plants?

• The top of the gardening pots need to have a fairly wide opening.
• A ceramic (glazed) pot is best. Clay gardening pots can be used but you run the risk of your plant drying out. You just need to watch it closely.
• Use containers with a fairly large capacity. 25-110 quarts.
• Make sure the water can drain. You need a decent amount of holes that are approximately .5 inch wide.
• Keep the pots off of the ground. Set the pot on a brick or block or a gravel surface to allow for drainage.
• Do not place your pots directly in the afternoon sunlight.

Ensure your success in gardening with pots:
Smaller pots restrict the root area so you run the risk of the plant drying out quicker. If you go with a small pot, just keep an eye on your plant. Size of the containers for plants does matter. Choose a plant for a specific pot, or vice-versa. Do not force your plant in a small pot, and do not lose your plant in a gigantic pot.

My top six plants for your garden:

1. Tomatoes
2. Strawberries
3. Onions
4. Peppers
5. Radishes
6. Basil

If you are like us and don’t have room to plant a “garden” try a gardening with pots and make sure to share your gardening adventure with your child.

Related posts:

1. Our Trip to the Local Farm for Fresh Food