SMART Gardens
SMART's teaching gardens help parents and educators learn how to grow food with young children. We make it possible for people to bloom where they're planted with small-scale food-growing strategies and resources.
SMART BOOKS TO READ
IN THE GARDEN
Growing Vegetable Soup
By Lois Ehlert
Erroll's Garden
By Gillian Hibbs
Cookie’s Week/La Semana de Cookie
Written by Cindy Ward
Illustrated by Tomie DePaola
Curious George Plants a Seed/Jorge el curioso siembra una semilla
Erica Zappy
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear/El Ratoncito, La Fresa Roja y Madura y El Gran Oso Hambriento
By Don and Audrey Wood
Illustrated by Don Wood
The Carrot Seed
By Ruth Krauss
Illlustrated by Crockett Johnson
Rooftop Garden
By Danna Smith
Inch by Inch
By Leo Lionni
Compost Stew: An A to Z Recipe for the Earth
The Grouchy Ladybug
By Eric Carle
Buenas noches, maripositas
Del creador de Diez pequenas mariquitas
Jump, Frog, Jump/Salta, Ranita, Salta
By Robert Kalan
Pictures by Byron Barton
Water Every Day
Unless It Rains
Think about coffee grounds after the coffee is made. They are moist, not soggy. That's how the soil should be for your vegetables all the way down to their roots. If your temperatures rise above 80 and 90, you will need to water more often. If the plant is in a container instead of in the ground, you will need to water more often. Smaller containers dry out faster.
More Watering Tips
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Don't water the tomato leaves. Water the roots.
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Gentle shower spray is best for tiny sprouts and new seeds.
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Mulch can help retain the moisture in the ground, so plants do not dry out as quickly.
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Watering is a big job, but it is perfect for children who want to help.
Is a cucumber a vegetable or a fruit?
It depends on who's talking.
To a botanist, a biologist who studies plants, a "fruit" is the part of the plant that has the seeds. It is also the part of the plant that emerges from the flower. The cucumber flowers pictured above became cucumbers, like the one hanging from the vine. To a chef, the flavor is what counts. A fruit is sweet, like apples, or sour, like lemons. Freshly picked vegetables are crisp and offer a wide variety of unique flavors.
"Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad." ...Author unknown
