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Growing veg with children

• Message 1. 

  Posted by Happy Bunny (U15072558) on Saturday, 31st December 2011

  Help please. I have a wonderful new garden at work (a nursery for 3 - 4 year olds) with raised beds. All is prepared and I am now ready to start planting with the children. So what to grow? I want it to have the quailities of a sensory garden - so lots of smells, things to taste and a visual delight
  I have thought about -
  a herb garden - might need to wait for spring
  garlic
  beetroot
  pumkins - need to wait for spring
  runner beans- need to wait for spring
  strawberries
  
  What else do people suggest ? Need as much help as people can offer.
  Thanks
  

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• Message 2

  , in reply to message 1.

  Posted by Tee Gee (U10012255) on Saturday, 31st December 2011

  Firstly do you want a edible garden, or a mixture of flowers & veg.
  
  Once you have decided this then you want a 'planting plan'
  
  See here;
  
  There is another link at the foot of this page that will takes you to other planning ideas.
  
  To speed this process up feel free to use the planners on this page;
  
  
  
  

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• Message 3

  , in reply to message 2.

  Posted by zoomer44 (U14019069) on Saturday, 31st December 2011

  There's lots of things you can do and grow to create a sensory garden.
  
  Starting with sight and colour, architectural structures add dimension. Vertical growing will give you height. French/runner beans will climb up frames and come in various colours- red/white pods, purple, yellow and green. Peas come in yellow and purple. All easy peezy to germinate and large seeds too for children to handle. There are also dwarf varieties so the children can reach to pick them. There are some lovely scented sweet pea varieties, these are large seeds and make nice cut flowers for the children to take home.
  
  Cougettes come in yellow, squashs - yellow. Gourds come in all shapes and sizes, you can grow snake shaped one's for the children to dry and paint or dry them and make musical instruments. Chad comes with yellow, red and orange stems.
  
  Strategically placed mirrors give more depth to the garden. Large smooth stones along paths give small children some where to sit. A feeding station for the birds will bring wild life into the garden and introduce noise. Wind chimes and a water feature will add noise and the latter bring wild life into the garden. Sunflowers are striking and their seed heads can be saved for the birds in winter.
  
  Moving onto taste, strong tasting plants like cherry tomartoes are sweet, chives can be oniony or garlicy, corriander smells divine when brushed past and has a sweet/sour taste. Fennel is aniseedy, lemon verbena is citrus, mint speaks for itself, nasturtium leaves are peppery and chillies hot.
  
  Touch and smell is slightly harder although a number of things already mentioned smell nice and need touching to reap the benefit. Lavender and jasmine spring to mind as strong scented.
  
  I'm sure other posters will have more idea's and suggestions.

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• Message 4

  , in reply to message 3.

  Posted by zoomer44 (U14019069) on Saturday, 31st December 2011

  If you are thinking of growing strawberries, alpine one's are less vigorous, don't put out runners and are slightly smaller than the usual one's, ideal for smaller hands to pick.
  
  These come in red and white. There is a white variety which tastes of pineapples but growing these could be a longer term project as I've not seen plug plants in the GC's and sown from seed are unlikley to produce fruit in their first year.

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