Little Angry DollGardening for Children - The Pizza Garden
September 27th 2006 06:35
Now that the warm weather has finally arrived, it’s time to get muddy and wet in the garden. It’s great to give children a little garden that they can be responsible for. What’s even better is one that they can harvest from and eat. Watching plants grow and making sure they are healthy can be a fun learning activity with a small cost outlay and a daily interest/job. With only a courtyard, The Pizza Garden is a potted garden we loved last year and are going to start again tomorrow.
The Pizza Garden
What you will need:-
5 pots – at least 40cm
2 Capsicum seedlings
2 Cherry Tomato seedlings
1 pot basil
2 x 30 litre potting mix
1 interested child
Tomatoes
Real winners with kids, cherry tomatoes are compact and quick to grow. They don’t need heavy staking – growing to about 35 – 50cm, but should have support with bamboo stakes, which can be used in pots. It generally takes about 4 weeks from planting established seedlings until flowering then another 2 weeks before the child can see their tomatoes start up. Best position is full sun, but afternoon sun works well. Harvest when fruit is ready throughout a growing period of up to 3 months.
Capsicums
Capsicums take longer to fruit and have a deeper root system than tomatoes, but a good 40cm pot should be fine. Ask your local nursery for a compact sweet variety. Planting established seedlings now should ensure full fruit by December. Use bamboo stakes to support fruiting stems. Harvest just before the fruit is ready to drop and leave on a window sill for a couple of days. Will fruit for at least 2 months.
Basil
Oh, oh, oh, it smells so good!!! Basil is an annual herb that tends to go to seed all too quickly. At the first sign of flowers, nip them off and your plant will last longer. Harvest every two weeks through a 3 – 4 month growth cycle.
Watering
Child – get the little gardener to stick their middle finger into the soil every morning to see how dry the soil is. Water every other day – or every day when there is a hot spell. Best watered in the morning.
Parent – Basil, tomatoes and capsicums need a fair deal of water. If you plant in the garden or in terracotta, water once the soil has lost moisture on the top. You can do this either lightly every morning or evening – when ever your child is more interested – or more heavily every second day, depending on the heat. With plastic pots, watering every third day is fine so long as you make sure the roots get a good soak. You may need to water every day when the temperature goes over 27°.
Feeding
Last year we used Thrive, a water soluble fertilizer. One provided spoon per 5 litres each week. Don't apply if it's a hot day.
Pests
Child – have your child check their plants at every water for caterpillars. For fans of Eric Carle, it may be hard to squish caterpillars. We carefully (my skin crawled) took the few caterpillars we found and gave them a new home. My gardenias are sturdy little plants. But we planted two of each fruit to ensure at least one made it through. Tomatoes and capsicums are susceptible to fruit fly, so be sure to remove ripe fruit. Pyrethrum or a simple home made garlic spray (1/2 fist of crushed garlic in water) work well instead of chemical sprays.
Post Script
Last year, Santa had a home made pizza left out for him.
The Pizza Garden
What you will need:-
5 pots – at least 40cm
2 Capsicum seedlings
1 pot basil
2 x 30 litre potting mix
1 interested child
Tomatoes
Real winners with kids, cherry tomatoes are compact and quick to grow. They don’t need heavy staking – growing to about 35 – 50cm, but should have support with bamboo stakes, which can be used in pots. It generally takes about 4 weeks from planting established seedlings until flowering then another 2 weeks before the child can see their tomatoes start up. Best position is full sun, but afternoon sun works well. Harvest when fruit is ready throughout a growing period of up to 3 months.
Capsicums
Capsicums take longer to fruit and have a deeper root system than tomatoes, but a good 40cm pot should be fine. Ask your local nursery for a compact sweet variety. Planting established seedlings now should ensure full fruit by December. Use bamboo stakes to support fruiting stems. Harvest just before the fruit is ready to drop and leave on a window sill for a couple of days. Will fruit for at least 2 months.
Basil
Oh, oh, oh, it smells so good!!! Basil is an annual herb that tends to go to seed all too quickly. At the first sign of flowers, nip them off and your plant will last longer. Harvest every two weeks through a 3 – 4 month growth cycle.
Watering
Child – get the little gardener to stick their middle finger into the soil every morning to see how dry the soil is. Water every other day – or every day when there is a hot spell. Best watered in the morning.
Parent – Basil, tomatoes and capsicums need a fair deal of water. If you plant in the garden or in terracotta, water once the soil has lost moisture on the top. You can do this either lightly every morning or evening – when ever your child is more interested – or more heavily every second day, depending on the heat. With plastic pots, watering every third day is fine so long as you make sure the roots get a good soak. You may need to water every day when the temperature goes over 27°.
Feeding
Last year we used Thrive, a water soluble fertilizer. One provided spoon per 5 litres each week. Don't apply if it's a hot day.
Pests
Child – have your child check their plants at every water for caterpillars. For fans of Eric Carle, it may be hard to squish caterpillars. We carefully (my skin crawled) took the few caterpillars we found and gave them a new home. My gardenias are sturdy little plants. But we planted two of each fruit to ensure at least one made it through. Tomatoes and capsicums are susceptible to fruit fly, so be sure to remove ripe fruit. Pyrethrum or a simple home made garlic spray (1/2 fist of crushed garlic in water) work well instead of chemical sprays.
Post Script
Last year, Santa had a home made pizza left out for him.
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