Potatoes are a versatile vegie enjoyed all around the world.
Sunday, 17th March, is St Patrick’s Day and which vegie is most associated with the Irish? Why the humble potato of course! Potatoes are a much loved vegie not only by the Irish but by kids as well so here are ten facts about the humble spud to share:
Potatoes are cheap, easy to grow and require very little fertiliser making them an environmentally friendly crop and perfect for kids to grow in the garden.
Potatoes were the first food to ever be grown in space. They were taken on board Space Shuttle Columbia in 1995. Continue reading →
Narelle from Natured Kids explains how to build a sweet pea tee pee.Today’s guest post is from Narelle Debenham, founder and director of Natured kids, a weekly outdoor playgroup for families and young children on the Mornington Peninsula. Narelle, registered teacher and mother of three boys, aims to have a positive impact on children’s lives, while deepening their connection with and understanding of our natural environment. For a free checklist of outdoor activities to inspire nature play with your children visit Natured Kids. Build your own sweet pea tee pee with the kids this Saint Patrick's Day.
St. Patrick’s Day marks the time of year when sweet pea seeds like to be planted in our gardens. Forty children from the Natured Kids outdoor playgroup planted these sweet peas to make a living, scented, sweet pea tee pee to play in at the Groundswell Community Garden in Frankston.
To make your own tee pee with the kids in your garden you will need: Continue reading →
This easy kid-friendly pizza helps use up those zucchinis that are STILL growing in your garden.
Are you looking for kid-friendly ways to use up those zucchinis that keep growing in your garden? If so, why not add it to a pizza? We still have an abundance of zucchinis and today we decided to try them on pizza. The result was delicious. Continue reading →
Lunch is served – peach and zucchini bread, choc zucchini muffins and a peach smoothie.
Like many people at this time of year we have bumper crops of zucchinis and peaches growing in our garden. Today the kids and I headed outside and harvested yet another bucketful and decided to find something new to bake with them. I figured there must be a recipe out there that combined both zucchinis and peaches and sure enough there was! After a quick internet search I found a recipe for Peach Zucchini Bread so we thought we’d give it a go. Continue reading →
Chloe Marchbank is enjoys teaching her children about the environment and recycling.Today’s guest post is written by Chloe Marchbank, a freelance writer and mum to three daughters. Chloe is passionate about teaching her daughters about the importance of caring for the environment and religiously recycles whatever and whenever she can.
Now, I know that on reading the title of this article, you’re probably thinking, “Why on earth would I want to make my garden look rubbish? Surely, I’m after tips on how to make it look nicer?” Well, before I go on any further, let me explain myself – because, when I use the term ‘rubbish’, I am in fact referring to using old household items to make your garden not only look nicer, but to also make it more eco-friendly – with the help of your children!
Your children are bound to love getting involved with helping you make these creations for your garden, and what’s more, it’ll also teach them the importance of recycling old items to help and do something positive for the environment around them. Continue reading →
Tara writes about the many lessons that can be learned through gardening.Today’s guest post is written by Tara Force from MUMmedia and Modern Homeschool Today. Tara is a passionate mother, writer and modern day homeschooler. She writes about the impact of popular culture on parenting and childhood, inspiring parents to ask questions and find the parenting style that is right for them even when it goes against the flow.
Just recently I discovered a seedling growing under my lemon tree. Not knowing what it was I pulled it out and a few days later two more seedlings appeared. I decided to consult my friend Google and was surprised to discover that without planting anything in that soil, pumpkins were growing in my backyard!
I was a bit excited and immediately got the kids to come and have a look. We have all been amazed that within four short weeks they have grown from a tiny seedling to THIS: Continue reading →
Berries are great for kids. They love picking them from the garden and best of all they love eating them too! We have spent a fair amount of time this summer outside in various gardens and berry patches picking and gorging ourselves on fresh berries and Little Miss B has had a ball! Berry picking is a fun activity that our whole family enjoys – even Master D enjoys observing from the baby carrier. Continue reading →
Soldier beetles are very common at this time of year.
Little Miss B was recently invited with a group of kids to a play date in her friend’s garden. Unfortunately it was cancelled at the last moment due to the garden being inundated with a swarm of soldier beetles. I hadn’t seen these little critters for a number of years but it seems that our local area has become the ‘hot spot’ for them this summer as other people have been spotting them in their garden too. These beetles are interesting creatures so I thought I would share some cool facts about them with you and your kids: Continue reading →
Alessandra Winfield enjoys spending time out in the garden with her kids and shares her tipsToday’s guest post is written by Alessandra Winfield – a Dietitian, homeschool mum of 2 boys and writer of the blog Practical Skills for Kids. She has been gardening since she was a little girl, learning from her grandmother. She just loves teaching kids all sorts of skills like gardening and cooking.
As a Dietitian I am seeing a lot of children and adults with food sensitivities. Unlike an allergy, food sensitivities can be subtle and symptoms only appear when the person has eaten over their threshold on certain types of food. While there is much more research needed in this area, there have been suggestions that chemicals in farming may have contributed to these sensitivities.
One of the best skills we can teach our children is how to grow food without the use of chemicals, also known as organic gardening. Here are my top six tips to deter the damaging pests and diseases in your garden: Continue reading →
The Junior Landcare Backyard Challenge is on!WE WANT KIDS TO TELL US: HOW DOES YOUR BACKYARD GROW?
Whether it’s a farm, a suburban veggie patch or an apartment balcony herb garden, Yates and Junior Landcare are asking kids around Australia, “How does your backyard grow?”
The 2012 Yates Junior Landcare Backyard Challenge is getting kids to answer this question with a short film or a photo, allowing them to showcase the unique aspects of their local environment. Entries have already started pouring in and we are seeing how diverse the backyards of Australia are through the eyes of young people. Continue reading →
