Gardening with Your Child: 3 Easy Crops to Grow Indoors
Gardening can be a great bonding activity for you and your child. It is a learning process to teach children about how plants grow and where food comes from, but the lessons can benefit your child for a lifetime. These are a few easy crops you can grow with your child.
1) Tomatoes
When growing tomatoes, you should choose the right seeds, which starts with differentiating between indeterminate and determinate plants.
Indeterminate plants are vining, which means they will need a cage, trellis, or other structure to support them. They also produce fruit all season long.
On the other hand, determinate plants are smaller. They will only produce fruit over a four to six week period. Choose the plants that are right for your garden size and the growing season!
When a seedling has one or two leaves, it is time to transfer it from it from its seedling starter tray. Gently take the seedling between your fingers and put your palm over the soil. Flip the tray upside down and tap on the bottom until the seedling comes out with its root system intact.
Now, bury the seedling. Make sure you bury it up to the hairs at the base of the plant, which will become roots, helping develop a stronger root system. Finally, water generously when the transfer is complete.
Fertilizer is especially important for indeterminate plants that continue to produce fruit all season. Make sure you are selective in what you choose as a tomato fertilizer. A fertilizer for tomatoes should be high in phosphorus.
Within two weeks of transplanting, you should fertilize your plants and continue to do so every few weeks afterwards until the plants are mature. This process will help your plants to produce the highest yield possible.
2) Carrots
Carrots are another easy and fun crop to cultivate with your child! Here are a few tips on growing carrots:
You will need a container that is at least a foot-and-a-half deep and wide. Make sure it has good drainage and fill your container with a humus-rich potting soil.
Water the soil and sprinkle to seeds over the top. Don’t worry about evenly spacing them since they are so tiny! Cover the seeds with a small layer of soil. As the carrots grow, you can remove the less sturdy seedlings and thin the plants out to about one inch apart.
You can harvest your carrots when they are about 3/4 inch across the top of the carrot. If you can’t see the top of the carrot, brush the soil aside gently to measure it.
Harvesting the carrots in a fun activity for kids—just pull them out of the soil! Grab firmly at the root and wiggle a bit, then pull up straight from the earth.
It’s also fun to see how big your carrots can get, but remember that if they grow much past the recommended harvesting time then they lose some of their flavor.
3) Cilantro
Cilantro is a great herb to grow as you can harvest both the seeds (coriander) and the leaves! It’s also extremely easy to grow.
When choosing your seeds, pick a variety that is “slow to bolt.” Bolting means going to seed, after which point the plant’s flavor is to bitter to use.
Use a mixture of potting soil and sand to allow water to move more easily through your container. Cilantro needs a lot of water to grow, so water until it comes out of the drainage holes.
Your plant should have full sun for about five to six hours per day, but make sure it doesn’t have exposure to sun during the hottest part of the day. This tip is essential, especially if you live in a warm climate, as cilantro doesn’t respond well to a lot of heat. After two weeks, remove all but the strongest seedlings.
The Bottom Line
These tips will get your indoor garden off to a great start! Your kids will love getting to watch their plants grow and feeling a sense of responsibility over them. Plus, all the delicious fresh crops are a welcome bonus. Happy growing!
