Part 1

Spring is a great time to introduce children to gardening. The ground is still moist from winter and the warmer days mean plants germinate and grow with abundance.

Gardening can help children connect and understand about the seasons, plants and animals that live alongside them and importantly the food we eat. It can provide fun and fascination for big and little people alike and there is always something for everyone. It just takes some dedicated time, patience and creativity to get started.

1. Planning

Start with a brainstorm session with the children about what they might like to grow. Are they interested in growing vegetables, flowers, herbs, succulents, fruit or a combination? Take into account their ages and attention spans; my youngest child loves easy to grow brightly coloured calendula flowers whilst the eldest has attempted to grow more unusual edible vegetables like dinosaur gourds.

Do they want a plot of soil or are they happy to use Styrofoam containers filled with compost, plant pots or something on a window ledge? (Of course work out what you have available before offering choices!)

Choose plants that suit your area and climate; remember the aim for your child’s garden is to be an inspiring and motivating experience for them. Try unusual plants and seeds such as three colour carrots, purple potatoes and yellow tomatoes! Fast growing seeds are good such as radish, sunflowers, nasturtiums, rocket and peas.

Consider size of seeds versus age of child. The younger the child, the larger the seed the better! Most children manage bean sized seeds or alternately use seeds that come cheaply in ‘bulk’ and don’t matter if they get spread around such as sunflowers and lupins .

2. Organisation

Seeds (including the unusual ones) can be ordered online (see below); or a family trip to the local garden centre may be the go. If your children are a little impatient it can be worthwhile to buy some flowers and vegetables in punnets so they have something ‘instant’ to watch whilst waiting for their seeds to come up.

Work out where in the garden the bed is going to be. Give them ownership of the bed (however small) to grow their veggies, flowers and fruit; don’t be tempted to use some of your own gardening ‘space’.
It must be a sunny open location where plants will grow, yet protected from play activities.
For my son’s first garden spot I had suggested a location that in retrospect was too shaded by overhanging trees as well as being too close to a swing, the plants did not grow well and thus of course his interest waned.

If the soil is poor or rocky and needs lots of preparation work this is best done prior to initiating your children’s garden. (You may wish to consider a no-dig garden).

3. Getting started

Getting the children to define the edges of their garden bed or garden ‘area’ themselves is important. They could perhaps use sticks, rocks, old fencing or whatever takes their fancy.

Once this is done it is important to rake over the site and ensure the plot is weed free; a great job to do together.

If needed some organic animal manure (pellets or composted), blood and bone or compost may be dug in.

If you are considering climbing plants now is the time to put up bamboo rods or fencing stakes for support. Adult assistance is obviously essential during this stage.

If it needs some protection from roaming animals like dogs and chickens don’t forget to do this now.

4. Planting

This is the exciting part for most children; I find with more than one child it is worth staggering the planting to ensure you can supervise and keep calm by focusing on one child at a time!

Guidance with planting method (how deep to plant, how far apart) is essential regardless of age as exuberance often takes over at this stage. Reading the seed packet or a planting guide together beforehand aids this process too.

Marking out rows and plants with labels after planting is invaluable not only to see what is growing but also to remind children where they have planted so they don’t plant over or trample on that spot!

Mulching with materials such as straw, old leaves and lucerne chaff between rows, around plants and on pathways is the final touch. It is worth motivating the children to ‘complete’ their planting with mulching so that future maintenance is less of a chore.

5. Maintenance

Keeping children enthused can be tough, however regular reminders when you yourself are going out in the garden or an offer of your help are great motivators.

Keeping the emerging seedlings free of weeds and the soil topped up with mulch regularly will ensure the plants have the best chance of success.

Remembering to water every 3 or 4 days in warm weather is important, marking a reminder on the calendar can help.

Children may also enjoy filling a watering can every 3-4 weeks with a seaweed solution (many commercial preps available, I use Seasol) and giving their plants a nutrient rich drink. This is safe for children to use.

I encourage you to try and garden organically (not using fertilizers or garden chemicals), it is better not only for your children but will also encourages beneficial bugs and earthworms in the soil and garden which will give additional fascination !

Note: No-dig gardening involves layering straw, animal manure and compost, see online or Ester Deans book ‘no-dig gardening’ for more information.

Mail order non-hybrid seeds available at www.diggers.com.au; www.edenseeds.com.au; www.greenpatch.com.au; www.selectorganic.com.au and www.greenharvest.com.au.

Happy gardening!

Next time; Part 2: From the garden and beyond .

Rachel Furbank
Sustainable living eco mum

Most people would agree that organically grown food is better for you and the environment. Research shows us there are more nutrients, higher antioxidant levels, no chemical residues or artificial additives in organic food. It certainly tastes better than conventional produce and the odd insect you find indicates it is chemical free and hasn’t been in storage for many months.

As a vocal advocate of organic food the reason I hear most against eating organically is the cost. There is no doubt it is more expensive than conventionally farmed food, sometimes it can be double or triple the cost* which can be daunting for the average family.

Here are some tips to help make organic food affordable.

Consider your eating and spending habits around food
Look at the fortnightly/weekly budget and note how much is spent on packaged convenience foods, snacks, meat and alcohol. Ask yourself; could expenditure be reduced in any of these areas and reinvested into organic food? In the summer we can easily spend $15 at a quick snack stop for icecreams for our family of five. However when cherry season is here I have no qualms at buying a kilo of organic cherries for around the same price and forfeiting the snacks, the red juiced (loaded with antioxidants!) dripping grins speak more than words.

Consider the health of your family
View organic food as a preventative measure. Rather than spending money on pharmaceuticals or trips to the doctor see spending it on organic food as an investment into your health. I contribute my children’s healthy immune systems largely to organic food, with a visit to the doctor a rare event in our family. We occasionally take vitamin supplements but I prefer to ‘eat the vitamins’ within some great tasting food as well as getting the additional benefits of other nutrients at the same time. Don’t wait until you are sick or health issues arise, see preventative eating as a priority now.

Consider that broccoli is not just broccoli
Don’t be fooled by appearances of fruit and vegetables. A recent Choice magazine survey I read found that supermarket strawberries had up to 27 different chemical residues and not all of them washed off. When buying fruit and vegetables consider how long they have been in storage, what waxes or coating they have and with what and where they’ve been grown. Don’t be fooled by appearance and the cheap buy. Cheap bags of fruit and vegetables are often old, chemically grown and lacking in nutrients and vitamins.

Start small
There is no need to change shopping habits overnight, first try with buying a few organic items a week. A good place to start is buying organically those fruit that have known high amounts of chemical residues such as apples, tomatoes, pears, stone fruit and strawberries.

Consider Lifestyle
A change in not just our shopping habits but also our overall lifestyle may be required. Consider the way you live and how often lunch or dinner is quick snacks, fast food, or restaurant meals. Take a look at spending on family entertainment; are there cheaper options to be contemplated? There is no need to be purist or extreme, my family love to eat out and see a movie; these however are occasional treats not regular entertainment. Buying organically may mean more cooked meals at home, less takeaways and require a little more planning. These changes may be a little challenging at first but reduced stress levels and increased overall well being will be the long term benefits.

Look for seasonal Australian grown produce
If organic food is still a little out of reach try to look for Australian grown produce. A lot of fruit and vegetables in our supermarkets have come from overseas; in particular China. Although pesticide residues in fruit and vegetables are monitored in Australia, other countries do not have the same regulations regarding pesticide and chemical use thus there is no guarantee. Check the label for country of origin; if it doesn’t state Australia or have any label, chances are it has come from another country. Try and buy produce that is seasonal relative to where you live. This is often the cheaper option as well as superior tasting. For example; buying a peach in June in southern Australia tells me it has either been in long storage or comes from far away and will probably taste bland and flavourless.

Grow your own
Growing some vegetables in your garden organically is a good way of reaping the benefits of both the food and the gardening activity. It is a cheap option at around $2-3 for a packet of organic seed although it requires time and patience!

Consider your children
There is a wave of new parents starting their babies off on organic food. This is a great introduction to solids and support to their developing immune systems. I was saddened to learn that this dropped off dramatically once children hit the age of 2. It is worth considering that after the age of 2 there is still much crucial development and growth to happen. Studies focused on children and pesticide exposure have put them at much greater risk than adults. This is because they eat more food relative to body mass and being smaller than adults, doses of chemicals have a greater effect. I see fitting organic food into our budget as an investment into my children’s future health. Consider continuing with the great food provided for your baby into the years to come.

Check out organic and biodynamic food on the web for more information
Suggested links
www.cleanfood.com.au
www.organicfooddirectory.com.au
www.ofa.org.au

* See www.organicfooddirectory.com.au for reasons for the high costs of organic food.

Rachel Furbank
Sustainable living eco mum

Slow Gardening - what does it mean to you? A friend’s email last week titled ‘slow gardening’ acted as a timely reminder of what gardening should be about. The words brought a knowingness that gardening was about relaxation and life enhancement and that it shouldn’t be a stress related activity.

Gardening had always been my ‘time out’ from the children but now I questioned my most recent approaches. That very day I had been outside as a task master with my mental ‘to do’ list, “first pruning, then seeding paddock, then finishing rock wall”. The garden had effectively been divided into chores. I had focused only on what needed to be achieved or completed.

There is much research showing the great therapeutic value of gardening. The combination of feeling the soil in your fingers, watching a plant grow, breathing in fresh air, physical exercise and being outside acts as an antidepressant and mood enhancer. However if we become overly task driven these benefits will be lost.

I am now focusing on keeping the garden my sanctuary, not another workplace. Once my ‘task master’ starts up and heaviness creeps in then it is time to leave it. I shall go and make a cup of tea or merely sit back, lighten up and enjoy.

Take ‘slow’ gardening a step further and consider investing in low maintenance plants such as natives, many herbs, bulbs and flowering annuals. These plants are resilient, often drought tolerant and will still bring rewards when neglected. They don’t require much effort to maintain allowing more time to just ‘be’ in your garden. Some of my favorites include lavender, rosemary, sage, achilleas, calendulas, marigolds and the native shrubs; banksias, grevilleas and callistemon.

This month I have planted out asparagus and garlic; they act as my patience lessons. Garlic takes about 7 months and asparagus 2 years until harvesting. Watching them grow reminds me that rushing and gardening really don’t go together.

My day is brightened by the cosmos, marigolds, calendulas and pineapple sage flowers that are bringing colour to a garden that on the whole has the decay of autumn. Most of them have self sown over summer and will continue to do so. Calendulas and marigolds are easy self sowers if left to go to seed.

In a fast world of instant results make gardening the different way of living or time out. Let being out in the garden bring you a sense of peace, solitude and patience.

Until next time
Rachel

Sustainable living eco mum

We harvested our first self seeded watermelon this week; it had grown from the non hybrid seed of an organic watermelon that had probably been eaten there the previous season. It received no fertilizer, special soil or treatment except the occasional bucket of bath water. The harvesting was a family affair as we were all just as excited about the melon that we had been watching grow for months by the shed door. It was surprisingly tasty and full of juice, the main problem was after everyone had had their fill it still wouldn’t fit in the fridge!

I love the cycling process that growing food brings; eat the food, save the seed, plant out nurture and then harvest again. I am still amazed at what can be produced from one small seed.

Last week I planted seeds of peas, silverbeet, coriander, spinach and broccoli. However I am not holding on to their success as we have since had 7 days straight over 35c. I accept it as a cheap loss; a packet of seeds, even organic ones cost no more than $2-3. To make myself feel better I have collecting spent sunflower heads and lettuce heads which I will add to my seed collection once they are dry.I order online all my seeds; even for a few packets it is worthwhile and so easy. It doesn’t involve having to drive or queuing at the shop, or arriving to find something is out of stock. It also opened me to the whole world of different varieties of herbs and vegetables that you cannot buy at the average garden shop. The best part is that they have not been chemically treated nor bred for only one generation like commercially available seeds. For more information on non hybrid seeds or organic seeds; see

www.diggers.com.au
www.edenseeds.com.au
www.selectorganic.com.au
www.greenpatchseeds.com.au

Gardening tip: Growing carrots
Mix carrot seeds with spring onion seeds and sand for good results (onions protect the carrots from pests) and spread out thinly in rows in the garden or deep styrofoam boxes. Sprinkle compost finely over the top, a sieve works well. Keep moist until germination.

Until next time

Rachel Furbank, Sustainable living eco mum