Gardening can be a fun, inexpensive and tasty educational project for children, especially if you set the stage for success, and Tyree Jordan, a science teacher at the Episcopal School of Nashville, is helping plant that seed.
Jordan has turned the school garden into a hands-on year-round science laboratory for his students, who range from pre-kindergarten to sixth grade.
“There is so much that children can learn from gardening,” he said, explaining that his school’s gardening classes are designed to not only provide science lessons on life cycles and how things grow, but also to teach about sustainability by composting and capturing the rain off the school roof to water the garden.
His curriculum also highlights healthy eating choices (“We eat what we grow,” he says.) and cultivating caretaking and teamwork in daily life.
“The garden is a laboratory. We talk about matter and how it flows through the ecosystem. We talk about composting and watch it break down,” Jordan said. “It’s very hands on as we do it and watch it, instead of just seeing videos or reading about it.”
Jordan’s students enjoy growing herbs and greens, flowers and assorted root vegetables, which are always full of surprises.
“All of the kids really enjoy it because there is something for everyone,” he said.
The children engage in different ways: Some love the hands-on work with earthworms; some thrive on the math aspect of calculating how much compost it takes for a six-foot-long raised bed: some like pruning the plants (they likened it trimming hair in a beauty parlor); and some love the business aspect of taking their harvest to the East Nashville Farmers Market to give away.
Pam Swoner, director of the Davidson County Extension Master Gardener Youth programming, has run a gardening day camp for children in past summers and agreeas that children can “learn a lot in that little square or a container.”
“My grandson is 5, and we started a raised bed a few weeks ago,” she said. “We talk about measuring, math, spacing, what he likes to eat, nutrition, why we need to water, and now he is picking beans.”
11 proven winners to plant with kids
We asked Jordan, Swoner and UT Extension Agent David Cook to suggest good plants to grow with children. Here are their picks:
Carrots: Jordan said, “Carrots are the most fun. A lot of the kids don’t know that a carrot has a leaf on it. And the seeds are so tiny. They can’t believe that that little tiny seed is now a great big carrot.”
Sunflowers: “They are fascinated with them,” Jordan said. “Sunflowers are so hearty and they grow so big. They are fun to watch since you can see them turn towards the sun. Even when they die, you can use the stem as a trellis to tie up other plants. And you can keep the seeds to plant next year, or roast them to eat.”
Zinnias: Cook said zinnia flowers are fun because they come in a variety of colors, including pink, red, purple, orange, yellow, lavender, white and green. “Zinnias attract hummingbirds, butterflies and beneficial insects.” He said it is best to grow zinnias from seed in the garden bed, rather than transplant them.
Patio Tomatoes: Cook said, “Patio tomatoes are determinate plants that grow to a certain height and then stop growing taller, which makes them an ideal plant for containers.” They are very productive for their size, producing as many as 50 fruits per plant over an 8-week harvest.
Stevia: “Stevia can be described as a somewhat plain-looking plant, but once you have placed one small leaf in your mouth, you will never want to use sugar again,” Cook said. “Stevia is native to Paraguay and Brazil, where it has been used as a natural sweetener for centuries. Stevia is much sweeter than sugar, but it has no calories, which is why it is has become extremely popular as a sweetener. Stevia is grown as an annual.”
Swoner’s suggestions include:
Beans: “Try several different types of bush beans. They mature quickly, come in different colors, and you can compare their taste. Choose a purple bush bean and watch it turn a bright green color when cooked.”
Potatoes: “Nothing says ‘surprise’ better than potatoes,” she said. “They can easily be grown on a patio in a container or grow bag. Just make sure you purchase seed potatoes. The ones you purchase in the grocery have been treated, so they will not grow in your garden.”
Pumpkins: “If you have room, children love pumpkins. They grow slowly, so patience is a must for pumpkins.”
Okra: “Okra loves our hot, humid weather and requires little care. The blooms are beautiful, produce is prolific; and the kids can pick and eat raw. A good choice is Candle Fire okra.”
Cucumbers: “Bush Pickle is great for containers. It takes up much less space than other cucumbers and does not require a trellis. If you want to grow a cucumber that climbs, try the General Lee.”
Herbs, like basil and mint: “Adding herbs to your containers is the perfect way to add sensory interest for your children to explore. You can choose a few fun recipes and compliment them with herbs from your garden.”
General advice for gardening with kids
Start small and include plants with a short growing season.
Commit to 15-20 minutes a week, and choose plants that are easy to grow.
Read seed packet labels, and plant and tend to accordingly.
Everything should be safe to eat.
Teach the children to pull weeds as they go.
Cook said that if you are growing in containers or small raised beds, look for vegetable seed packets labeled as “space saver,” “bush type” or “compact.”
Swoner suggested ordering a few seed catalogs ahead of planting, so the children can look at pictures and descriptions of plants. Some good ones are Territorial Seed Company, Sow True Seeds and Johnny’s Seeds.
Episcopal School of Nashville’s garden
This garden got its start in 2018 after Scout Will Wheeler built six raised beds behind the school as his Eagle Scout project. The garden was to be tended by the students and parent volunteers. Tyree Jordan, whose daughter was a kindergartner at the school, enjoyed volunteering. He was later hired to teach science and decided to incorporate the garden into his curriculum.
Now all of the students have 30 minutes of gardening every week as one of their special areas, along with art, music, library and yoga.
The older students in grades 4-6 have a more traditional science class, but it also includes gardening as a hands-on part of the learning process.
The ESN garden is a year-round effort. In the summer months, students take turns picking the summer harvest of tomatoes, herbs, carrots, beans, garlic and cucumbers, and taking them each Tuesday to the East Nashville Farmers Market. They give the food away, but there is a donation jar with funds earmarked for another of Jordan’s creative science projects: building a weather station.
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