Tuesday, March 26, 2013

A Fun Two Year Old Activity

I have gotten ambitious this year and decided to start a garden by seed.  Not only was this something I was eager to try but it also turned into a really fun activity for Silas.  I know nothing about gardening so this is really a learning activity for both Silas and I.  Even if we never get any veggies, fruit or flowers from our seeds it has been fun to do with him.  The cool thing about doing this is that it doesn't cost that much at all to start - you need seeds, planters, soil, markers and water.  I really didn't have much of a plan when we started and just went with it.  So here is our little planting seeds activity...


We did this a couple of weeks ago when we had a shot of warm air and it pretended it was becoming spring for a moment.  It was nice being outside, and was a big tease.  Something I learned is that its really hard to get pics when you are covered in soil and are also trying to keep Silas from dumping the soil everywhere.  That was probably his favorite part, playing in the dirt.  So to get started on this activity we headed over to the dollar store (yes, the dollar store) and grabbed some seed packs - we chose sunflowers, tomatoes, watermelon and oregano.  While there I also grabbed some seed starter planters - these are cool because they can go right into the ground when you are ready to plant.  We already had some soil- its just regular garden soil nothing special.


I didn't realize however that I needed way more seed starters for the amount of seeds we bought.  So, I improvised and used some plastic punch cups that I had.  I also didn't think about plant markers until about halfway through - luckily I had a bunch of clothespins which worked perfect for this.  
Honestly I really had doubts that we would see any growth from our seeds but after about a week we started to see little sprouts come through!  Silas was so excited and checks on them every day.  We have them sitting in a windowsill and water about every other day - not much because I'm afraid of over-watering. 
Now the next step will be planting them outside - which I'm also really unsure about.  We still have some time before we can - especially since the weather has been so cold.  If any of you have some great tips for gardens I would love to know!  

Even if we end up getting nothing from out little sprouts it was still a fun activity to do together.

So how about you, planting any seeds this year?  Have you ever started a garden before and had success....or maybe not so much?  Share with me!

10 comments:

  1. Sounds like fun! You can also use egg cartons for seed starters, though they're a little smaller than cups.

    ReplyDelete
  2. We had one not successful garden :) But I'm trying herbs this year, so fingers crossed!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. haha! Good luck Kate! I have never really tried to have a garden so this could be a complete bust!

      Delete
  3. Awww, my boys would love this! I pretty much have a black thumb, but maybe we'll try something simple so they can watch it grow. You've inspired me! ;)

    ~Abby =)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks for sharing! Me and the little just may try this.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This looks so fun and I just may have to do something like this with my boys...my thumb is definitely far from green, but maybe my boys have the magic touch! You never know, right? And your son is adorable...those eyelashes!!! ;) Jesse @ Scout & Nimble

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Jesse - he does have some killer eyelashes! I have never really tried anything like this - so we shall see. It could go well...or not lol!

      Delete
  6. Looks like so much fun, I just may have to try this with my girls too. They love to grow stuff, I just have to remember to water it :).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha, yes well fortunately my son won't let me forget to water :).

      Delete