Fun Summer Activities For Kids: Organic Vegetable Gardening

Organic gardening is a green summer activity that can last the entire vacation. Helping the kids grow their own organic garden is fun and they’ll be able to reap the benefits before school starts again by harvesting their own vegetables.

Organic gardening is gardening naturally, without the help of commercial fertilizers and other chemicals that are used to help produce grow bigger faster. Growing fruits, vegetables and herbs naturally may take some time but it can be done.

When growing organic fruits and vegetables you may enjoy need to be patient and creative but you can grow all your fruits, vegetables and herbs organically.

Why Teach Your Child Gardening?

Children need to learn about gardening for several reasons; it can teach them where food can come from, it can teach them how plants grow from seeds to plants that produce, it can also teach them other things like patience as they watch the garden grow.

Gardening also gives the kids a chance to get outdoors and do something that is productive and fun. Allow your child to go with you to buy supplies that are needed for their garden. You may even want to start them out in a pot or a box outside that they can plant a few plants in.

What’s The Deal With Organic Gardening?

Organic gardening is fast becoming a trend for present generations as most of them are becoming health conscious . Vegetables purchased from the super market are not healthy to consume as they are sprayed with chemicals. Many people are keen to switch to organic products for their health benefits.

When you teach your children to grow organically they can enjoy the fact that they can pick fresh fruits and vegetables right off the vine and eat it right away. With chemicals you must wash your food thoroughly in order to get the chemicals off of the food.

Planning Your Organic Garden

Before planning to start an organic garden, a few basics have to be understood by every beginner. The biggest advantage in organic gardening is that it requires less maintenance, less time and cost. This activity will require some pre-planning and most likely should be started before school is out.

The best way to start a garden for children is to germinate the seeds indoors. After it is decided what type of vegetables to grow, get the plants ready inside so they have a better chance of success when they are moved to the outdoors.

Some of the items you will need to purchase would be soil, seeds, hand held garden tools, a watering can and some fertilizer if needed. Have your child read the directions on each package and notice how everything is grown differently.

For example, cucumbers are barely planted under the ground while carrots need to be planted deeper. Knowing the depth of each seed will ensure that your child’s garden will grow accurately and productive.

Harvesting produce from their own organic garden will make your kid proud

Preparing The Soil

The first important thing needs to be considered for planning an organic garden is soil. The soil meant for the organic gardening must be healthy. The next step is adding nutrients to the soil such as organic fertilizers etc. One the most important nutrients that should be added to the soil are compost.

Compost can be prepared in our garden or can be purchased from the market. There are some techniques for selecting the best compost – fast compost is the most popular. By using fast composting techniques the soil gets prepared within six to eight weeks.

Other techniques of composting consume lot of time, so fast composting is recommended. Tilling of the soil is done after the soil is ready for use. After the soil has been tilled, next step is to sow the garden with organic seeds. The last step is controlling those weeds and pests by using organic pesticides and herbicides.

Organic Vegetable Gardening With Kids

Beans, radishes, and carrots are all easy vegetables to grow. Have the children make home-made row markers for their vegetable garden using paper and popsicle sticks. You can have the pictures laminated or do-it-yourself with some clear packing tape to protect them from rain.

Make the garden the child’s responsibility, if there is already a garden plot in your yard give them a section to call their own. Most children can be in charge of their own weeding and watering. This is another good activity that fosters independence and will give the children a sense of accomplishment come the end of the summer – eating vegetables that they grew themselves in their own backyard.

If fruit and vegetables do not interest your child, try a different kind of plant. Go to the garden center together and let them pick out a small plant or seeds that they want to take care of for the summer or maybe for longer if they pick a perennial plant.

There are other ways to get the same affect that fertilizers give you. Taking care of the soil requires you to work on it several times throughout the year so when you are ready to plant you can ensure that your soil is rich enough in vitamins and minerals to help seeds and plants grow.

© Loving Your Child

This article may be reprinted with a live link back to www.lovingyourchild.com

Organic Gardening Resources:

• Family Organic Garden – Grow your own organic garden with this fully illustrated guide. Don´t pay for something you can grow yourself for free. Get rid of toxic chemicals in your diet, start eating fresh, tasty and energizing food. Maximize your health and minimize your budget at the same time.
• My Organic Food Garden – Are you ready to start producing amazing food while saving money and your health? Discover the secrets behind growing high quality, organic food at home and eliminate harmful chemicals from your diet with this book.
• Organic Food Gardening Beginners Manual – Growing your own food makes you less reliant on commercially grown foods. Access the information you want quickly and easily, in this 103 page step-by-step gardening manual for beginners that makes planning and growing your vegetable garden a breeze. Learn how to grow your own healthy, live, organic food – saving money & eating chemical free.

Photo source vmiramontes

Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2011 SEO & More