What Kids Like To Grow In the Home Garden
Peas are a cool season early crop that has a big seed that is easy to plant.
Most kids love peas and they will also get to help shelling the peas for a meal.
Peas can be planted next to the tomatoes.
The peas are harvested early so the tomatoes will not start to grow fast until the peas are harvested.
This is an example of companion planting.
My variety pick is Little Marvel Garden Peas, 62 days till maturity, 8 plants per square foot.
Lettuce is a cool season early crop with a mild flavor that most kids like.
The color is a light green so it is easy to tell apart from the weeds that might come up.
You will want to plant several small plantings about a week a part (succession planting).
Even the healthiest family can only eat so much lettuce at one harvest.
My variety pick is Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce, 48 days till maturity, 4 plants per square foot.
Swiss Chard is a leafy vegetable that is planted early and produces all season long.
Kids love the colored variety that grows in shades of orange, pink, red, white, and yellow.
Who knows your kids might even like eating green after growing this colorful vegetable? My variety pick is Bright Lights Chard, 55 days till maturity, 4 plants per Square foot.
Kohlrabi is an interesting vegetable that is a swollen stem the size of a tennis ball.
It is a round ball with leaves growing up.
It looks like a vegetable from outer space.
This interesting vegetable is a hit with kids if served in a cream sauce.
My variety pick is Early White Vienna Kohlrabi, 55 days till maturity, 16 plants per square foot.
Beets are an interesting to kids because of the red color.
The seeds are easy to plant in early spring and the tops are edible as a salad green.
Your family will need to decide on how many to prepare as "Pickled Beets" or "Harvard Beets".
My variety pick is Perfected Detroit Dark Red Beets, 58 days till maturity, 16 plants per square foot.
Carrots are planted early and come in a rainbow blend of colors that I recommend for kids.
Carrots need a deep soil with lots of organic material in the soil.
I recommend that your first year you purchase bagged soil from the garden store to insure success.
The colored carrots are not as productive but much more interesting for kids to eat.
My variety pick is Rainbow Hybrid, 75 days till maturity, 16 plants per square foot.
Yellow Wax Bush Bean seeds are large and easy to plant.
Again the kids love the yellow variety that is easy to see when you harvest.
As a child I was surprised that they did not taste like wax.
These yellow beans need to be planted after the danger of frost is gone.
If they get harvested early you could possibly get a second succession crop if you have a long season.
My variety pick is Improved Golden Wax Bush Beans, 56 days till maturity, 9 plants per square foot.
Tomatoes are a must in every garden.
I recommend that you go to your local garden store and purchase you plant(s).
A commercially grown tomato will never taste as good as the first ripe tomato you eat off the plant in the garden.
I have raised tomatoes in four states and every year I am guaranteed an attack by the tomato hornworm.
It is a large green worm with a horn sticking out of its tail.
What a great opportunity for kids to learn outside the class room - an up close bug sighting.
For kids I recommend a patio type variety.
The tomatoes are smaller but they are earlier and produce before the onset of diseases common with the larger tomatoes.
My variety pick is Tiny Tim, 50 days till maturity, 1 plant per square foot.
When choosing the vegetables to grow in your family garden, remember to: 1.
involve your family in the vegetable selection with some for younger children who prefer the milder flavors, 2.
choose some large seeds that are easy to plant by younger gardeners, 3.
include vegetables of all different colors, size, and shapes, 4.
select plants that are planted and harvested in different months, and 5.
pick plants that work well with square foot method, companion planting, and successive planting.
If you have vegetables that have worked well with your kids please send me an email on my website http://homegardeningforbeginners.
org/.
Most kids love peas and they will also get to help shelling the peas for a meal.
Peas can be planted next to the tomatoes.
The peas are harvested early so the tomatoes will not start to grow fast until the peas are harvested.
This is an example of companion planting.
My variety pick is Little Marvel Garden Peas, 62 days till maturity, 8 plants per square foot.
Lettuce is a cool season early crop with a mild flavor that most kids like.
The color is a light green so it is easy to tell apart from the weeds that might come up.
You will want to plant several small plantings about a week a part (succession planting).
Even the healthiest family can only eat so much lettuce at one harvest.
My variety pick is Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce, 48 days till maturity, 4 plants per square foot.
Swiss Chard is a leafy vegetable that is planted early and produces all season long.
Kids love the colored variety that grows in shades of orange, pink, red, white, and yellow.
Who knows your kids might even like eating green after growing this colorful vegetable? My variety pick is Bright Lights Chard, 55 days till maturity, 4 plants per Square foot.
Kohlrabi is an interesting vegetable that is a swollen stem the size of a tennis ball.
It is a round ball with leaves growing up.
It looks like a vegetable from outer space.
This interesting vegetable is a hit with kids if served in a cream sauce.
My variety pick is Early White Vienna Kohlrabi, 55 days till maturity, 16 plants per square foot.
Beets are an interesting to kids because of the red color.
The seeds are easy to plant in early spring and the tops are edible as a salad green.
Your family will need to decide on how many to prepare as "Pickled Beets" or "Harvard Beets".
My variety pick is Perfected Detroit Dark Red Beets, 58 days till maturity, 16 plants per square foot.
Carrots are planted early and come in a rainbow blend of colors that I recommend for kids.
Carrots need a deep soil with lots of organic material in the soil.
I recommend that your first year you purchase bagged soil from the garden store to insure success.
The colored carrots are not as productive but much more interesting for kids to eat.
My variety pick is Rainbow Hybrid, 75 days till maturity, 16 plants per square foot.
Yellow Wax Bush Bean seeds are large and easy to plant.
Again the kids love the yellow variety that is easy to see when you harvest.
As a child I was surprised that they did not taste like wax.
These yellow beans need to be planted after the danger of frost is gone.
If they get harvested early you could possibly get a second succession crop if you have a long season.
My variety pick is Improved Golden Wax Bush Beans, 56 days till maturity, 9 plants per square foot.
Tomatoes are a must in every garden.
I recommend that you go to your local garden store and purchase you plant(s).
A commercially grown tomato will never taste as good as the first ripe tomato you eat off the plant in the garden.
I have raised tomatoes in four states and every year I am guaranteed an attack by the tomato hornworm.
It is a large green worm with a horn sticking out of its tail.
What a great opportunity for kids to learn outside the class room - an up close bug sighting.
For kids I recommend a patio type variety.
The tomatoes are smaller but they are earlier and produce before the onset of diseases common with the larger tomatoes.
My variety pick is Tiny Tim, 50 days till maturity, 1 plant per square foot.
When choosing the vegetables to grow in your family garden, remember to: 1.
involve your family in the vegetable selection with some for younger children who prefer the milder flavors, 2.
choose some large seeds that are easy to plant by younger gardeners, 3.
include vegetables of all different colors, size, and shapes, 4.
select plants that are planted and harvested in different months, and 5.
pick plants that work well with square foot method, companion planting, and successive planting.
If you have vegetables that have worked well with your kids please send me an email on my website http://homegardeningforbeginners.
org/.
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