The right side of this garden is more mature than the left so in previous pictures the left side has been cropped out to various degrees. I'm so happy not to have to crop anymore. I love a mature garden!
... and another angle a little later in the day:
and a few more:
To see this garden as it has matured and at other times of the year, click here and scroll down.
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Okay, so it doesn't look like much yet, but if you just squint a little, and ignore the weeds, and imagine herbs all around this new patio I just put in... then it is pretty nice, isn't it?!? Well, I think so.
Our neighbour took down a spruce tree (with our permission) in this spot in our backyard last fall, so I've had some time to think about what I wanted to put in here. When it's all planted up, and the new shrubs grow up to form a "wall" on the left, this is going to be a very cute little herb garden! Perennials herbs french tarragon, oregano, and thyme as well as asparagus will get planted this fall (after the heat wave is over!) I might put strawberries in too... what would you plant?
Design-wise, I'm also quite happy with how it fits with the rest of the yard... it is on axis with 'England' (the veggie garden):
as well as the long axis of the yard, aligned with the garage door
and the "hopscotch" stepping stones:
What are you doing in your yard this summer?
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The Adventure Garden is called such because it has pathways throughout to encourage the kids to get right in and explore! Best thing I ever did!!
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I'm particularly enjoying spinach and arugula at the moment - how 'bout you?
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Yum! Just gotta remember to finish cutting the chive flowers off (they are edible!) before they go to seed, or else chives everywhere!!
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Each year I try to grow at least one new thing in the veggie garden, and this year it was arugla.
(Note: Last year it was kohlrabi, which I had read was a fun veggie to grow for kids since it looks like Sputnik. Well, they were underwhelmed, and so was I, frankly. A guess it would be good with dip but by itself it was nothing to write home about. I won't bother growing it again.)
Anyhoo. I have discovered that I LOVE arugula! Why have I never tried it before?!? It is delicious! I love the nutty flavour with a bit of zing. However, from what I have read, it will get bitter in the heat of summer so should be pulled and started again from seed towards the end of the summer for a fall crop. Too bad, as I will miss its pretty flowers too! Maybe I'll leave it for just a few more days or until it becomes unpalatable...
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It may look like a lot, but I thought I was being quite restrained! ;-)
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I'm just back from holidays - I've been out of town and offline for several weeks - and am excited to see corn doing so well in my garden!
I planted it this spring on a whim - I usually like to try growing at least one new and different thing each year, and I've never grown corn before. It was more for the novelty and for the kids - I planted an ornamental variety and a baby corn variety - and didn't really expect to get anything as corn needs such a long, hot growing season and doesn't typically do well in Calgary unless you have a hot micro-climate. But with the hot summer we've had mine is doing quite well and I might even get a small harvest! That's what I love about vegetable gardening - it pays to diversify and every year there are surprises.
So if you've sent me a message in the last few weeks, my apologies for not responding yet and I'll get caught up in the next couple of days. I don't put a vacation message on my email as it just doesn't seem like a good idea what with pictures of my house on the website, etc.
How is your garden doing?
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The fruit season in my yard started with Haskap honeyberries, followed with strawberries which are just finishing, and now the first cherry bush 'Carmine Jewel' is starting to ripen. It is 4 years old now and really starting to produce. (Cherry 'Crimson Passion', also planted in 2008, didn't produce this year but it died to the ground last year and I subsequently moved it to a less exposed spot and I expect better next year.) The raspberries are ripening now too, and soon it will be Saskatoon time... I love summer!
I haven't tried making anything with these cherries since my kids eat them off the bush and don't leave any behind. But that's the point, for now. Maybe someday I'll have enough extra fruit for a pie!
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If you're a member of the Calgary Horticultural Society (and if not, why not?), you will be receiving the latest magazine this week, with a "Gardening with Kids" article by me! Let me know what you think!
PS. I don't usually post photos of my kids on the blog but these photos are all several years old and the girls don't even really look like this any more, so I figured it was OK. It is fun to showcase my girls, for a change, in the garden playground I have created for them. Feel free to gush about how gorgeous they are!
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I was at the garden centre over the week-end and couldn't resist picking up a few pansies to put on my front and back steps. These annuals are super hardy and once hardened off, can be left outside at this time of year. Hardening off means gradually acclimatizing these soft, greenhouse-accustomed plants to the outdoors by starting to put them outside on a relatively warm day in a sheltered spot for short periods of time, and gradually increasing the exposure and amount of time. The afternoons should be fairly warm starting tomorrow so I'll ask my kids to put them out for a half hour or so starting tomorrow afternoon.
I love seeing flowers on the step when I come home from work! It's been too long!
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Play with your kids' garden Playmobil!!
So, I haven't actually got around to any of the spring cleaning I suggested I might do in a my March to-do list. Let's face it, it may never happen. But I did get the curtains finished. And the raspberries pruned. And I have lots of healthy seedlings growing in the basement under lights!
What are you doing while waiting for spring?
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February is the start of gardening season for me, despite the weather (although this year, I don't think we have anything to complain about... yet), and despite the possibility of up to 4 more months of snow...! I can keep myself from going crazy at this time of year, and it's because I start seeds.
Here are iceland poppy, lagurus (bunny tail grass), and 'marble arch' salvia under lights in my basement. Aren't they cute?
I've written a lot about starting seeds in previous years, so this year I'll just give you the links. But let me just emphasize, that one of the keys to success is starting seeds at the right time.
I also grow sprouts all winter long, which my kids devour. They're yummy rolled up with cream cheese in a tortilla! I can't grow them fast enough, actually.
But to be honest, I'm out in Kananaskis country this week and not thinking of seeds or gardening much at all. Really, how can you not love winter with a view like this?
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Since Calgary has such a short growing season, I always encourage people to include lots of plants that will stay standing and add texture and interest to their garden all year round. My Adventure Garden has lots of ornamental grasses, liatris, tall sedums, siberian iris, and more, that do just that.
Except, of course, if they get toboganned over.
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I took this photo last week-end before the Chinook blew through - it is ornamental allium 'Purple Sensation' seedheads in my Adventure Garden. One of my all-time favourite plants and the kids love them too. If you don't have any, put them on your bulb list for next fall. Here are some pictures of them in their full purple glory in spring.
If, at this time of year, you're thinking that maybe you should have a few more plants in your garden that stay standing and looking good throughout the winter, go to my 'Winter Interest' category and scroll down for ideas... and start planning for next year!
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Winter finally hit Calgary this week - I walk to work and I finally had to dig out my gloves and hat a couple of days ago! It has been a long, mild fall so I'm not complaining one bit. I'm extremely busy in other parts of my life right now (job, family, gearing up for Christmas) so it's actually nice to take an enforced break from gardening. I will start blogging more again in the new year.
In the meantime, there's not a lot to do in the garden these days except shovel snow. Remember to shovel it onto your garden, not the street where it will be wasted...
...even my three-year-old knows that! (I don't usually post photos of my kids but you can barely see her in this one anyway so I figured it was OK!) She's a great little helper!
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Ever since I noticed my neighbours putting their leaves in the garbage a few years ago, I have been "rescuing" other people's bags of leaves. Why? Because I only have one decent-sized deciduous tree on my property (but many, many spruce) and I don't have nearly enough leaves as I (or the kids) would like.
So I rescue other people's bags and first dump them on the back lawn for the kids to jump in for a while. When they've tired themselves out, I mow the pile a few times with my push mower to chop up the leaves, then I start dumping them in the gardens for mulch. Technically you should wait until the ground has frozen to put winter mulch down, but when you're a busy gardener who works full-time and has kids, you do things whenever you have the chance even if the timing isn't optimal!
I've written about the benefit of leaves before - they are high in nitrogen and they insulate the soil from our wild temperature swings and drying winds in wintertime. This past spring I didn't even bother to clean them up! You are supposed to remove winter mulch in order to help the soil warm up faster in the spring. Again, here I don't follow the rules and maybe my garden is a week or two behind in the spring, but minimizing work is a higher priority for me! Dried leaves don't look as pretty as fresh, clean soil does but you can put some compost on top of them in the late spring for a cleaner look.
I even save and reuse the garbage bags from the bags of leaves that I rescue! I'm sure the neighbours think I'm crazy, prowling the back alleys and lurking around the leap drop-off area, but I really think I'm doing the world a favour!
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This dessert was invented, painstakingly made for the whole family, and served by Daughter #2 (5 years old.) And in case you couldn't tell, she also styled this photo!
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I'm running this workshop for the Hort Society - should be tonnes of fun! Hope to see some of you there.
Jun 04, 2011 9:30 - 12:00 at the Society office
Janice will be your garden guide as you and your child help design and plant the “Children’s garden” display garden at the Horticultural Society office. Learn plenty of skills and creative ideas for you to implement in your own garden, and pot up some fun plants to take home with you too!
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I'm working on a Parents and Kids gardening workshop for the Calgary Horticultural Society. Currently the plan is a 2-hour workshop for a 6-8 year old accompanied by a parent. This is totally exciting to me but also a little petrifying - my experience with gardening with kids comes only from my own family and a few friends. I've never worked with a larger group before!
If you were attending such a workshop, what would you and your child be interested in learning/doing?
This post also reminds me of a few links that friend/reader Paula sent me a while ago and I keep forgetting to post. They are for great (adult and/or kid) projects that could be done at home:
If you would like a beautiful and kid-friendly garden that nourishes your body and soul, view My Services for consultation details.
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I know we have many more weeks of winter left but I'm starting to let myself feel just a wee bit excited for spring! Normally this time of year I pull out my old magazines, go to the library and stock up on gardening books, and just stare and stare at pictures to get my colour fix. This year I also added a little floral to the indoors to satisfy my cravings.
The bay window in the kids' play room has had plain blue curtains in it for years. In the interest of reducing/reusing/recycling, I didn't want to get all new fabric but I wanted to dress them up. So I made felt flowers with ric-rac stems and sewed them on. I also lined the curtains and hemmed them. Actually, I started this project one year ago and finally got around to finishing them last week! If I'd taken the time in advance to think about how long these were actually going to take, I probably would never have done them. But anyway, they're done! And here's the view with the curtains open as well!
... and some new punchy floral fabric I happened to notice at the fabric store made a nice runner for the buffet in the dining room and pillows for the sofa. The fabric just happens to have all my favourite colours in it. (Yes, I know it's a dowdy sofa but I'm holding out for another year or two until the kids are past sofa-jumping age!)
What are you doing to stay sane these days?
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I'm starting to gear up for spring these days with lots of garden renovation plans, seed starting, and more frequent blogging. And then I remembered I hadn't told you about my worms yet. Would you think I'm crazy if I told you I got myself a worm composter for Christmas?
I've already admitted to stealing bags of leaves in the early mornings, so now I'm admitting to housing worms in my basement. Seems entirely reasonable to me! I'm sure most gardeners would agree, although my mother-in-law, a fellow gardener, was pretty squeamish about it when I told her.
As the saying goes, "feed the soil and the soil will feed the plants." Good soil is the key to healthy and productive plants and a handful of worm castings can do wonders. Basically, it adds biology to the soil - it adds microbes which are what extract nutrients from organic materials (dead plant material) and incorporate them into the soil to be available to plants.
I plan to use my worm castings primarily to top dress my house plants and vegetable gardens. They could also be added to the perennial gardens and/or lawn - even just a scattering helps. Unfortunately, I won't have enough to go around so the edible gardens will be the highest priority.
A worm composter is a great science project for kids - my three-year-old especially likes to help feed them. We feed them a couple of cups of chopped up kitchen vegetable waste a couple times a week, and that's about all the work it takes until it's time to harvest the compost (can you "harvest" compost? you know what I mean!) And there's no smell or mess, honest! In fact, my bin smells quite sweet.
One tip a friend gave me is to freeze and then thaw the scraps (especially fruit) before adding them to your bin in order to kill off potential fruit flies. I do have another friend who's had fruit fly infestations in her worm bin so I consider that very good advice!
Other resources:
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Someone asked me a while ago if I could post some plan view sketches of my garden so they could get a feel for the layout. Doing so is still on my winter to-do list.. but in the meantime here's one my 7-year-old drew of our backyard.
It is actually quite amazing (she's a genius, of course!) in terms of the details she has included... I don't think she's missed a single container! Although the drawing isn't exactly to scale...
She drew this plan because she wanted to show me what she thinks I should do in the garden next year... put in more trees and more pathways. The section in the middle is where she'd like me to take out the current lawn and plant a lot of deciduous trees (so that we'll have lots of fall leaves for playing in) with pathways in between them for exploring/chasing/playing hide-and-seek. Cute!
I've said it before and I'll say it again: putting pathways in the garden for the kids to roam was the best thing I ever did. Pathways that link and make circles are even better. For posts about the pathways I've created in my garden, check these out:
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The photos below show my latest ideas for a playhouse... or a teahouse... or actually a playhouse to eventually be turned into a teahouse. But first, this lovely spot in my yard is where it's going:
Yikes! It almost hurts me to post this picture but this is what my north patio has looked like all summer! We took down the nasty greenhouse last spring and this empty spot has been just sitting here growing weeds. But actually, that's OK, because I've been waffling back and forth on what exactly I want to put here. Now I've got the winter to finish planning and deciding, and my husband has promised that this project will be the top of his priority list next summer.
Originally I thought a "treehouse" would be fun, and I posted a picture of an inspiring playhouse previously. I wanted something that was fairly high to eliminate the imposing view of the side of my neighbour's house (only partially seen above.)
But now I'm leaning towards something lower down, that adults will actually be able to use when the kids aren't using it. I'm thinking longterm here - the kids won't need a playhouse forever!
And to save ourselves the work of trying to lay a patio in this spot to match the already existing patio (a big pain in the &^$%, believe me, we've done it before), we're thinking of building a pergola/house with a slightly raised deck for a base. I like the base of this one (below) for its openness and style:
Above photo from the LA Times.
I wouldn't go quite so Asian for the style of the rest of the structure though, as it wouldn't fit with my yard. So I kept looking for more inspiration...
Design tip: renovation and design options can be overwhelming so one way to figure out what you really want is to collect photos over a period of time of things that catch your eye, then figure out what are the key elements that the photos have in common that you liked. Here are the pergola photos I've collected this summer:
Above: I love anything in blue, of course! But I also love the chandelier and the interesting fence as a backdrop.
Another one with a chandelier. Too bad I don't have such a view...
Above: Lanterns are cute too though, don't you think?
But let's be realistic here. I'm not going to have such a beautiful "adult space" for a few years still. I was thinking our structure could be used for the kids for a playhouse for a few years first. We could put temporary walls on it but an easier way would be to add curtains:
This (above) is pretty, don't you think? I could see kids using something like this as either a playhouse or a stage, depending on whether the curtains were open or shut.
And finally, I'm leaning toward a covered roof (so more of a teahouse than a pergola) because our structure is going to be situated between two large spruce trees in my backyard (practically everything is between two large spruce trees in my yard, but I digress...) A solid roof will prevent everything underneath from getting covered with needles, cones and sap. But I'd like to keep it as open as possible to maximize light. The roof and curtains on this one (above) are perfect.
I should have been more diligent in keeping track but I believe all unlabelled photos above are from www.houzz.com.
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"It looks like candy."
So I went to the Plant Share last week-end and brought my four-year-old daughter with me. We each picked one plant to bring home and this is what she picked! It happens to smell nice too, but that's not why she picked it!
Now my gardening style, as you may have noticed, is fairly naturalistic. This plant with its sickeningly sweet flowers is pretty much going to clash with everything in my yard when it's in bloom! So I had no idea where I was going to put this plant in my garden. (I should probably have a spot reserved just for each kid, but I don't.)
I ended up putting it on the edge of the Adventure Garden, right beside a pathway for easy access for the kids. Conveniently, I'll be able to crop it out of any photographs I take of the garden as well. ;-)
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This area was christened "England" a few years ago by my oldest daughter after we got back from a trip there. It's eventually going to be an edible garden area with raised beds and cold frames.... someday! In the meantime, it's a former RV pad and I'm growing things in pots. It certainly looks better than last year, don't you think?
We're currently harvesting peas, lettuce and cherries from this area, and soon scarlet runner beans. The kids love to snack on things from the garden!! Strawberries, chard and other edibles are sprinkled throughout the rest of the yard.
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Although I originally wanted to paint my house trim some fun and wacky colours, practicality and new vinyl windows prevented me from doing so. So while the door colour is fun, I am gradually working on painting the faded yellow trim of my house with more conservative white and brown (below). I still like the blue though and I really don't get why most people prefer to have a beige house. Isn't Calgary beige enough most of the year already?
But speaking of using paint in the garden, check out Nancy J Ondra's recent post about her 'Happy Garden'. There are some great ideas here to add colour in a fun way, and all the things she did would work extremely well in a children's garden. Make sure you scroll down to see the pictures near the bottom.
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I've always said I'm not a lawn person but I must admit that one of the problems of having such a small lawn is that the traffic gets concentrated in such a small area and then the condition of the lawn gets worse faster. The only reason I care at all about the lawn is because it provides a nice border to the garden (ha ha, I know that's backwards)!! So I thought it would be useful to put some stepping stones in.
But why not make them fun? My girls love the new hopscotch stepping stones and even if they didn't, I think they'd be fun for adults too. Every time I cross the backyard I plan to hop!
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My adventure garden, two years old now, is filling in nicely. There's a saying about planting perennials that "the first year they sleep, the second year they creep, the third year they leap". This is leap year and I'm looking forward to big things!
The kids have been using the dry stream bed as a "slide" recently so I'm going to have to get some more gravel to fill in the top - the rocks seem to keep collecting at the bottom! But I love that they use it to truly be IN the garden.
Pathways for kids are one of the best ways of helping them enjoy the garden without worrying about things getting trampled. Best thing I ever did!
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I'm a couple days behind on this one but for the record, here's what's happening with my seeds:
Started March 5:
Started March 20:
Started March 27:
Started April 6:
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... your six-year-old starts drawing garden designs and telling you what she thinks you should do in the garden this year!
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Is it more spring fever? Or am I not the only selfish, flower-deprived gardener who buys flowers for her four-year-old for her birthday? (I did buy her something else, too!)
Can you guess which arrangement she did herself?
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... and nobody can say I don't plan ahead! While we've got a playhouse in the works for this year, I want to have hubby build the playhouse in such a way that when the kids are older, we can turn the frame into a pergola.
What I like in this picture is the small stone wall that provides an extra place to sit if necessary. I also like the little rectangular garden on the outside of the stone wall.
This little wall is an extra touch that would be so easy to build, would lend a sense of permanence to the structure, and would also reflect some heat to the garden in front of it, creating a little micro-climate for heat-loving plants. The spot where I have in mind for this idea would also benefit visually because the small garden would break up a large expanse of patio. I am definitely keeping this idea for when my pergola gets built, someday in the far distance future...
This picture is also taken from "Garden Magic; Inspired Garden Design" by Gisela Keil and Gary Rogers.
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After the "greenhouse" comes down, we're planning to build a playhouse for the kids. Personally, I love this one, although there's probably a few too many pots scattered around to be considered safe...
This picture came from a book entitled "Garden Magic, Inspired Garden Design" by Gisela Keil and Gary Rogers. It's definitely inspiring!
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Way back in spring I planted some lavatera, nicotiana sylvestris cardoon and verbena bonariensis from seed, in order to "fill up" this garden which was only started last year. Yikes!! They're all huge and blooming away now. You can't even see the cardoon at the back and I have to keep cutting the self-seeded borage back. But still, annuals are a great way to fill up space while you're waiting for your perennials to mature. I think I'll skip the nicotiana sylvestris next year, though. It just takes too long to get big - in the spring you wish it would fill up a spot faster, and now it's so huge you can't walk on the pathway beside it!!
... the lavatera, however, can stay. It's just too beautiful!!
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Yesterday was my oldest daughter's last day of kindergarden. I can't believe it!
She was quite proud to bring her teachers these bouquets that were cut from our very own garden. They will look a little better, I think, once they are in proper vases!
And someday I really must learn a little about flower arranging... I only know how to grow them, not how to arrange them very well...
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I just had to show you this! My oldest daughter (5 1/2) decided the other day to take pictures of iceland poppies - one bud, one unopened flower, and one flower, plus she had me take a picture of her holding them all. She said she was going to use them for a magazine page about poppies!! Brilliant, eh? And totally independent of me, I might add.
She must have got the idea from the gardening magazines I have lying around the house. Kids notice so much more than we even realize!! I am making a mental note to myself NOT to leave fashion magazines with pictures of waif-like models lying around...
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Thinking about getting the kids a little more involved in the garden this year? I can say from experience that it really is possible to have a beautiful garden that your kids are allowed to play in. The most important things (I think) that you need to do are:
1. Let go of a little perfectionism. Let the kids pick flowers if they like them. I have a few special plants that my kids know I don't want them to touch, and they know they are not to step on any plants, but otherwise they are free to enjoy the garden as they would like. Since I have mostly perennials, I also know that even if the kids pick all the flowers (which they don't generally do), the plant will still come back next year. Some plants even flower more if you cut the flowers off anyway!
2. Have pathways and hideaways to make it fun and easy for the kids to explore the garden. Just put down some mulch on the pathways and you can always plant something there in a few years.
3. Make sure the kids have some ownership in garden planning (this is related to letting go of some perfectionism!) Give them a spot to dig. Let them plant some easy-to-grow plants (plants from large seeds and bulbs are great). It's a nature, environment, and science lesson with fresh air and exercise to boot!
4. Plant edibles to snack on while playing outside. My only mistake is not planting enough - the kids seem to eat all the strawberries and tomatoes every year before I get any! Would you believe they even love salad if it comes from the garden? Plants that are interesting to smell or touch are also great for kids.
Here are some more ideas I've found recently from other websites:
A crawl tunnel from
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/gardening-blog/2009/mar/10/children
I could easily see this made much taller (for bigger kids) simply by using longer poles.
Lots of ideas posted at the Garden Blogger's Design workshop on Gardening with Kids.
Also some tips below, mostly related to growing edibles with kids, from one of my favourite new websites, the Garden Girl's Urban Sustainable Living:
The
Family Garde
20 things to help get the youngest in the family involved in the garden!
Ever wish you could get the family more excited and involved in the garden? Here are some tips to help make that happe
Cynthia McKenna
is a writer, gardener, Episcopal Priest, and psychotherapist in the Texas Hill
Country. To visit her blog click http://gardengateblog.com.
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I never got around to contributing a post myself (where do these people get the time?), but here is the link to the "Gardening with Kids" design workshop hosted by Gardening Gone Wild. Lots of great comments and ideas here.
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My mother-in-law is really into fairies and hence, now my girls are too. And now I am too! This is what I got her for Christmas - a little fairy door and window that can be nailed to the bottom of a tree, fence or other outdoor structure. Would these not look cute with a little miniature pathway and some dwarf plants in front of them??
It was hard to resist not buying a set for myself (you can even get mailboxes, bridges, fences and more from Natural Pod), but I think by spring I will be building myself a little fairy garden...
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I may not be getting outside much these days, but it doesn't stop me from planting. I must really have a problem - I can't even stop myself from buying plants when I'm at the grocery store!
Under the guise of buying this for my kids to plant, I picked this up yesterday. But really, it seems to me it is a great winter gardening project for kids. Amaryllis bulbs need nothing but a pot with some growing medium. They grow quickly, are interesting looking while they're growing and have gorgeous, showy flowers - making them ideal plants for kids.
... not to mention they make great Christmas decorations and gifts!
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When I looked out the window this morning, I saw snow. My first thought was "Oh, I need to go take a picture for my blog." My second thought was "I really should have made getting the kids new mittens a higher priority these last few weeks." My third thought was "What kind of Mom always thinks about gardening before her kids?!"
Better go mitten shopping this week-end.
(and BTW I didn't take a pictures until much later on since it was dark at the time anyway...)
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Here are the 3 pumpkins I grew this year still in various degrees of ripeness on my laundry room floor. I thought it would be fun to grow them for the kids and was hopeful they would be ready by Hallowe'en, but no such luck. Since I have a small urban space, I chose a variety that was fairly compact - but it was only medium in terms of planting to harvest time.
That's OK, the kids still had fun watching them grow, and I didn't plan to use my homegrown organic pumpkins for jack o'lanterns anyway - they're going to be food!! Yum.
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This house in my neighbourhood is my kids' favourite. They call it the "log house" because of the little red fence. Whenever we walk by, it's almost impossible to keep them from running around in it - sometimes I don't even try because it seems as if it was designed with kids in mind. Little miniature fences and benches to perch on, pathways to follow, birdhouses and other decorations to check out, what more could you ask for? Way more fun and interesting than the ubiquitous lawn.
I personally love the pathways made of recycled concrete and stepping stones.
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Yes, its' true, with little kids it is important to have a spot in the yard where they are allowed to dig. But for me, any place that is diggable soon gets filled up with plants, I just can't help myself!
So this year I finally had a solution. Why not let them have the bare spot under a spruce tree? The only problem is that the roots make the ground so hard there that it is impossible to dig with adult shovels, let alone wimpy kid ones. So when I excavated for a new pathway elsewhere in the yard, I dumped the soil here. Now they have perfectly good, diggable soil in a place where nothing else would grow anyway. It ain't pretty, but it works for now!
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I know I said I don't like tulips but the flowers are so recognizable and showy, I couldn't resist buying a few packages in my daughters' favourite colours: pink and purple. This week-end we planted them around the garden together. It is fun to do as long as you're willing to let them do the "design" work.
The kids picked the spots, we dug each hole together, I put some fertilizer in the bottom and they dropped in five bulbs each, then we covered them back up and they got to stomp the dirt down. How fun is that?
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I think I must have 'Silver Carpet', a non-flowering variety, because this plant has never flowered for me. That's OK, I planted it for its leaves. Kids love this plant, and I do, too! The leaves are so, so, soooo soft.
Lamb's ears likes full sun and is very drought tolerant. In fact, the only way to kill it is to give it too much water or too rich soil.
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After reading lots of articles about how growing veggies will get kids more interested in eating them, I can finally report that yes, it's true! This lettuce is growing right beside the patio and my kids like to walk over and yank off leaves to munch on while they're playing in the backyard. I wouldn't believe it myself if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes!!
... and here's the salad I made last night. The kids didn't eat the flowers but at least thought they were interesting! They had 3 helpings of lettuce and tomato.
After blogging about how borage flowers are edible, I decided to give them a try. I wouldn't say they taste like cucumber, but they do have a pleasant, very mild flavour. I still think they're nicer in the garden, though.
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