Summer

Summer Break Solutions

Submitted by sarahp on Sat, 06/01/2013 - 01:02

By:

NGA Staff

Other than for schools with year-round schedules, maintaining a garden during the summer is a common challenge. Watering and weeding needs reach their peak at the same time vacation schedules reduce the number of available volunteers.

Garden Time

Submitted by sarahp on Thu, 04/25/2013 - 00:41

By:

NGA Staff

How can you tell time in the garden without using a watch? Check and see what’s blooming!

Flowers have amazing adaptations to attract pollinators. Their scent, colors, and shapes have evolved to draw these vital critters towards them, since in the process of collecting nectar, they also move pollen from flower to flower to ensure seed production and distribution.

Cylinder Gardening

Submitted by sarahp on Mon, 02/25/2013 - 00:52

By:

Sarah Pounders

Right Side Box:

Download the Cylinder Gardening Lesson for more details.

A big gardening program…in a little garden space. Cylinder Gardening uses bottomless cylinders (1/2 of a 5 gallon bucket) as small, individual gardens for growing vegetables. Perfect for schools with limited growing space and poor soil, cylinder gardens require little land and minimal pre-gardening preparation or experience. Once the cylinders are filled and planted, the only labor is minor maintenance, watering and harvesting. Recommended plant varieties mature from seed in 30 to 90 days to fit within one school semester.

Preservation Techniques

Submitted by RoseJM on Thu, 09/13/2012 - 14:53

Freezing Sweet Corn

By:

Rose Judd-Murray

Right Side Box:

For more information about preservation techniques and recipes visit these recommended websites:

September is a critical month for harvesting fruits and vegetables—at the peak of their taste and ripeness. One of the most important decisions is how quickly do you want to eat your produce? Many gardeners choose to eat in season, while others choose to preserve some of it for winter months.

Stimulating Imagination in the Garden

Submitted by RoseJM on Tue, 08/14/2012 - 08:33

Building Fairy Houses

By:

Rose Judd-Murray

Right Side Box:

Fairy Houses (The Fairy Houses Series)

Author: Tracy Kane

ISBN: 978-0970910458

With young children, there are few lazy days of summer. Most days are filled with intense constructive projects from blanket forts to tree houses, and from sandcastles to bean teepees. Kids love creating these special spaces.

Looking for Opportunities to Grow

Submitted by cynthiad on Mon, 07/16/2012 - 11:10

By:

Becky Wivagg with Cynthia Domenghini, NGA Staff

Right Side Box:

Looking for Activites to Help Youth Grow?

Download these free attachments and get your students outside!

Discover a Rain Garden (PDF) »
Discover a Sensory Garden (PDF) »

Beat the Heat: Start Early, End Late

Submitted by RoseJM on Mon, 07/16/2012 - 09:51

By:

Rose Judd-Murray, NGA Staff

It can be difficult to get motivated about maintaining the yard and garden during one of the hottest and driest summer months. There are definite dangers for young children during the most intense temperatures of the day.

Sharing the Love: Spreading Seeds

Submitted by RoseJM on Mon, 06/11/2012 - 00:00

By:

Rose Judd-Murray, NGA Staff

Right Side Box:

How-To: Make A Seed Bomb

Materials:

Clay (purchase at craft stores)
Compost or potting soil
Seeds (we recommend easy-to-grow or native varieties)

Bring this activity home, or share it in the classroom with these easy step-by-step directions (PDF). »

Taking a walk together as a family is a great way to teach your kids about varieties of flowers, shrubs, and trees. It's an unstressful time to engage and allow them to ask questions about their own local environment.

Growing BIG in the Great Outdoors

Submitted by cynthiad on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 10:12

By:

Cynthia Domenghini, NGA Staff

Right Side Box:

Bonnie Plants’ Third Grade Cabbage Program is a free program offered to third grade classrooms nationwide. The purpose is to support youth to eat healthy and be garden advocates. To support this purpose, Bonnie Plants offers resources online to help students grow their cabbage. In addition, lesson ideas and recipes are provided along with help for teachers and parents. Visit the Bonnie Plants Cabbage Program website for more details about registration.

You can also view a complete list of the Third Grade Cabbage Program scholarship winners for 2011 for each state.

Being outside has so much to offer; whether you are a gardener or not, there is a place for you in the Great Outdoors. Each year, thousands of third graders nationwide find a special place outside by participating in a program which challenges them to grow an oversized cabbage.

The Beginning of a Library Garden

By:

Cynthia Domenghini, NGA Staff

Right Side Box:

NGA's Own LibraryGardens.org

Libraries have a unique opportunity to provide a visual connection between literature and nature. Grants are available to support library gardens, but often require someone with a vision. National Gardening Association offers assistance in this area. Whether you’re interested in developing a particular theme garden or a garden that encompasses a variety of books, our professional staff of landscape architects, horticulturists and educators can help you develop your vision. Visit Library Gardens for more information about how we can design your library garden which will in turn help you as your seek support for funding the installation of this space.

The Village of Plain City Garden features several animal topiaries named after classic authors.In an effort to preserve the historic Village of Plain City, Ohio, local gardeners and members of the county Master Gardener program pulled their resources to establish a landmark for the town.