Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Good Growing: A Kid's Guide to Green Gardening (Klutz)
Gardening Kit
For ages 8 and up
Klutz, 2010 ISBN: 978-1591747390
Growing flowers, herbs, and vegetables provides people of all ages with a great way to connect with the earth in a meaningful way. Even if you don’t have a yard, you can grow a delightful miniature garden in containers on a windowsill or on a porch.
The book begins this gardening journey by explaining what organic gardening is. Then the authors explain what a garden needs to produce plants successfully. Next, young gardeners are given instructions on how to use the “super sprouter” trays that are included in this kit. All you have to do is sprinkle the seeds for edible sprouts on the growing pod, fill the tray with water, and you will soon have a completely organic garden of delicious, and nutritious, sprouts.
If you have a sunny windowsill in your home you can turn it into a delightful mini garden. All you need to do is to buy some little pots, fill them with organic potting soil, plant some seeds, water, and wait. The radish seeds provided in the kit would work very well for a project of this kind. Other great projects for windowsill gardeners are also described, including making your very own potato head that has a head of grass that grows!
For those of you who have some space in a yard, the book is full of information about how to grow things either in containers or in the earth. The book explains how to prepare the soil, how to plant, how to make compost, how to protect plants from pests, and much more.
This kit will show children that gardening can be both fun and enormously rewarding. It is an activity that you can share with others, and you don’t need to be a genius to be able to do it. The book is full of great projects, excellent information, and easy to follow directions. There are illustrations, diagrams, and photos throughout the book to help youngsters better understand what to do and how to do it. The kit includes two super sprouter trays and two packets of seeds.
