To start us off, M & I discussed what kinds of fruit & veg she likes the most, then did some research on which of those are suitable to grow in the UK climate and what is appropriate for planting at this time of year, and what will give us the quickest crops. Then we headed off to the local garden centre:
We stocked up on all the necessary supplies, as well as various seeds and seedlings so we can watch the progress from various different points in the growth cycle.
We've got strawberry plants, tomato plants, rhubarb and lettuce.
We also got the following seeds:
- Nasturtiums - to companion plant with the tomatoes as a natural pest repellant. They also happen to be colourful, pretty, and edible, and are supposed to attract bees and butterflies.
- Summer Squash (Patty Pans).
- Sunflowers - they're fantastic. So easy to grow, look stunning, attract bees and butterflies, and then when they're dead and dried out in the autumn the birds can feed from the dead heads.
We also got a couple of potato growing bags for all the potatoes that have started growing in the cupboard!
This will obviously be an ongoing Science project with many lessons to learn and many opportunities to cross-reference to Mathematics, English, Biology, Art & Design and so forth. For example:
- Writing lists; recording observations; writing captions
- Budgeting; prices; and money
- Sequencing
- How plants grow
- Taking photos
- Draw / paint / sculpt
- Pest control vs attracting wildlife
- Crop rotation
- ...... and more
Earlier today I also stumbled across this very useful free printable notebook / observation record for the plant lifecycle. That is going to come in very handy indeed!
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