Kids have always been patience challenged and modern kids are even more so. The biggest challenge for unplugging them to garden outdoors is projects that grow fast enough to keep them interested. Enter the sunflower! This extraordinarily fast grower is a North American native of the Midwest. The tall branching plant does not produce large flowers, but they do mature into nutritious seed. That is why it’s been farmed by many Native American tribes along the Missouri River flood plains for aeons. Over time they selected seed from the biggest flowers to increase the size of each kernel they grew. With the advent of modern agriculture that same selection process continued. Scientific breeding of the Mammoth sunflower resulted in the fifteen foot tall plant that every kid and adult marvels at. Growing Mammoths from seed is awesome. You can grow them in a big forest that kids play beneath, or use them to create an enclosure open in the middle like a fort. Because they are so cheap to grow, you can cultivate a whole gang of them using kids garden tools, such as our kids trowels and cultivators to create a structural crop that defines space rather than just a single row. There are so many opportunities to teach through sunflowers: 1) Stress the value of native plants and their relationship to Native Americans. 2) Fast germination lets kids see the result of their planting in just days. 3) Teach how to water generously with these thirsty fellows. 4) Demonstrate the importance of manure via soil improvement and mulch. As the sunflowers mature point out how the terminal bud follows the sun. They are “photo-tropic”, which is an awareness of the sun’s position and will indicate this all day long. The final position of the flower is dictated by where it is the moment it opens, then it stays that way forever. Over the late summer, watch the flowers pollinate then drop their petals to produce the dinner plate sized seed heads. When the seed is mature cut them off and lay flat in the sun to dry out. From these you can pick out the seeds and roast them together. Leave a few sunflowers unharvested for the birds to pick on and save a few of your dried heads to put out for winter birds many months later. And finally, like the Indians did, save a small bag of the largest seeds to plant next year. Browse our kids gardening store for other items to help get you started growing sunflowers this season! HortiKids Staff Writer, Mo Gilmer

Gardening with Kids is a life long adventure and opens a whole new world of learning. Consider all of the aspects of gardening that kids can learn: planning, material choices, weather considerations and environmental concerns. Break all of the complexities down to the simple - just get your hands dirty and get started in your outdoor (or indoor) gardening classroom: 1. Begin with a bit of planning. Let's say your're planning an outdoor garden and have some space concerns. Take a sheet of paper and layout your proposed garden with the kids using a ruler, to scale, if preferred. Determine factors based on the future growth needs of your planned flowers or vegetables and how much space will be required. Do you have any space that ought to be set aside for transplanting needs? 2. Visit your local nursery (or online store!) and choose from a variety of seeds such as flower seeds or vegetable seeds, or perhaps plants. Part of the fun is watching the seeds germinate, but if you're looking to get a quick start, obtain some plants already grown at the desired stage. 3. Provide the kids with their own garden tools that they can use as their own. Kids love ownership and having a set of tools for the garden which they can turn to will help keep them interested. 4. Instruct them on the care of the garden as it begins to grow. Pulling weeds is part of the process. Let them water the garden and observe all that lives amongst the plants - worms, insects, etc. 5. Consider making a stepping stone - one with words on it that kids can place in an area all their own. Stepping stones with a child's name on it or perhaps a word stepping stone with a plant name on it make great garden markers and add personality to your garden. The more time you spend in the garden with the kids, the more they are going to consider it a habit and they will naturally want more. And of course, there is always the harvest! For more ideas on the wonderful, and easy ways, of involving kids in gardening, visit our Learning Directory. You may also find some helpful gardening resources for your classroom or family by visiting our online store and browsing our categories of products that help teach kids gardening and horticulture. Enjoy your Garden Together! Kim Hummert

As a parent, teacher or even a Scout leader, start with a basic understanding of your local environment and the types of birds that live around you. This will make the teaching and educating easier, since children tend not to have the patience and stamina to watch and wait for that rare appearance. You may want to first begin with a bird house and / or bird feeder and attract the wild birds in your chosen area. Choose a bird house that allows for nesting so that your local bluebirds, sparrows or cardinals can find an enjoyable habitat to raise their young. A family of birds tend to stay longer, especially when the nesting environment is large enough to support them. Your bird house should be weather resistant and have plenty of ventilation. Place a bird feeder nearby and keep it well stocked. Also be sure there is plenty of water nearby either in the form of a bird bath, lake or pond. Once you have a family of birds living near you, involve the children: 1. Point out the species of birds that live in your bird house and keep a journal. Let your child or class handwrite the journal keeping notes on times of day such birds were eating, the number of birds observed and the weather. 2. Use some good bird identifying tools, flash cards or books. Being able to see the bird in full color and then in the wild on a regular basis, whether in your own backyard or while traveling helps to build the ability to observe successfully. 3. Obtain a set of bird watching binoculars that can provide just enough strength that the child can hold them steady and view the birds in all their glory. Making bird watching a regular activity, if even for a short period of time, helps to reinforce all that you are teaching. Stay with it and soon you will have some childhood ornithologists on your hands! You can find other useful tips that help teach kids about nature and the world around them by visiting our Learning Directory. Learn about mini gardens, topiaries and topiary forms, including bird houses and bird feeders while shopping our categories at HortiKids.com. Helping parents and educators teach kids about gardening and horticulture! Make it a Great Day!

Kids of all ages enjoy being outside. And there is no better way to engage a child both mentally and physically than to teach him or her all there is to know about gardening and horticulture. Here's an idea - if you are a parent or teacher, tell your children that you will be growing pumpkins for Fall. Let's say you wish to plant a row or two of pumpkins in a garden. You'll need a couple stakes and some string for starters. (It also helps to bring along some kids). Ask a child to hold one end of the string on one end of the intended row while you line up the other. Tie each end of the string a few inches off the ground to its respective stake once you have made a straight line. Now you will have a site line to help you plant your pumkin seeds in a neat row. You'll need some garden tools such as a trowel, cultivator and possibly a garden hoe. Unearth an area if planting along a row, sow 2-4 seeds approximately 1"-2" in depth spaced every 16"-18" apart. Try and keep your rows 6'-8' apart since the pumpkin vines are very busy and can take up your whole garden area. Close your seed areas using your garden tools such as a hand trowel or garden hoe. Then be sure and water your newly planted row. As you and the kids watch the seeds germinate and sprout into pumpkin vines, you'll be interested to learn that pumpkins are considered a squash fruit and grow as a gourd from a trailing vine. They can reach 40 lb. to 80 lb. in weight, but can be picked when they are much smaller than that in size. Also, pumpkins are known botanically as a fruit, referring to how a plant grows from a flower. However, it is widely regarded as a vegetable since it is most often cooked and eaten in dishes such as pumpkin pie. Yum Yum! Growing pumpkins to eat or enjoy for your Fall Festival is a fun gardening project and one that involves the use of all kinds of garden tools. For more ideas visit HortiKids.com and browse our categories of gardening resources that help you teach kids about gardening and horticulture. You can also find helpful articles while visiting our Learning Directory for other fun ideas and projects. Make it a great Day in the Garden!

We'll outline below how to make a stepping stone and what materials you will need in addition to one of the Make Your Own Stepping Stone or Word Stone Kits which will be used in this learning exercise. If you are a teacher or a parent, you've selected a very fun project, one you and your kids will enjoy doing and enjoy using for a very long time to come. Step 1: Prepare your work area, since you will be mixing your lightweight batch of concrete (included in the kit). Note: you will need additional concrete to make more stepping stones out of the forms included in the kit. Lay a plastic sheet on a flat surface where you will be working. Try and select an area which can remain un-disturbed for a few days as your stepping stones can setup. Take a black plastic trash bag (if you have one handy) and cut the edges to yield a large square plastic piece - fold it in two if you can so that you have a more durable work surface. Step 2: Open the starter bag of lightweight concrete and add 3/4 cup of water and about a tablespoon of tint (as desired) to the bag. Mix the concrete and close off the bag with a twist tie, squishing it all around until it is well mixed. Pay attention to the corners of the bag so that they do not get clumpy with "un-squished" concrete. Add a few drops of water (it does not take much) so that your mix is somewhere between the consistency of "soft serve ice cream" and "hard ice cream." (It's always fun to serve some ice cream after the main event!) Step 3: Dump the concrete mix from the bag to the form, pushing the concrete down into the form with the trowel. Be sure it gets flat and does not have any holes or openings within the mix on the sides or the bottom. It helps to push the mix down into all four corners of the garden stepping stone. Step 4: Arrange the letters the way you would like them to appear on your garden stone on top of the concrete without pressing them down! Once they are arranged properly and to your liking, then press them down one at a time and remove them. Re-use the letter form if it is needed in the word you have chosen. Step 5: Slowly lift the form straight up and off the concrete. If your concrete is firm, you can lift it all of the way up and remove. Smooth the stepping stone with your fingers for a light touch and rounded effect if needed. Then let the stepping stone dry for 48 hours as it cures. Note: if you are making your garden stone outside, lay a plastic sheet over it so that it stays a bit moist from the hot sun. If inside, keep little fingers away from it once completely finished! Making stepping stones is a fun and easy project for kids of all ages. Whether you choose fingerprints or footprints, the garden stone will last a long time. Teaching kids about gardening and horticulture involves all types of projects, and includes those that keep hands busy. If you would like additional ideas for teaching kids gardening and horticulture, please visit our store at www.hortikids.com and browse our categories and Learning Directory for other fun ideas and projects. Making HortiKids one Kid at a Time!

Topiaries are easy to make and fun to grow. Starting a topiary and then maintaining it is also a great way of exposing kids of all ages to the wonders of gardening and horticulture. If you do not know what a topiary is, see our post on "What is a Topiary?" for additional detail. A topiary is defined as the clipping or trimming of a bush, tree, or shrub which results in the visible recognition of an object or shape. Some skilled gardeners many years ago perfected this craft by first knowing the types of trees or shrubs grow well when pruned or trimmed in varying environments and conditions. Some live topiary plants will respond better than others to fertilizers, irrigation, sunshine and of course, pruning, to generate the desired outcome. And they made beautiful topiaries by hand without using any pre-made topiary forms or topiary frames. May I suggest that if you are new to the art and science of growing topiaries, begin with a topiary form. A topiary form, like the animal topiaries below can be placed over a shrub either on the ground or in a pot. Also, you can mix a combination of soil and moss and "stuff" the topiary form which will be used as a growing substrate for the plant you select. Try and choose a plant that will do well naturally, in the area where the topiary will be placed. Either in a window sill or outdoor garden. If you are involving children in a school gardening project or perhaps kids in a girl scout or boy scout science and nature lesson, have the kids set the topiary frame (give them gloves) over the pre-planted topiary shrub and work the branches in and through the frame wire. Then have them water the topiary plant and set it in the sun for growing. As the branches protrude through the frame, begin clipping and pruning them. Over time they will grow more dense and the foliage will cover the topiary frame itself, resulting in the desired topiary shape. You can learn more about involving kids in gardening and horticulture by browsing our categories at www.hortikids.com and teach them about botany, entomology, and how we get our food from growing plants and vegetables. Enjoy your Topiary!

What is a Topiary? A topiary is defined as the art of creating sculptures in the medium of clipped shrubs or common plants where the pruned and trimmed branches yield dense leaves that cover the topiary frame (if one is used) to achieve a recognizable shape. Topiaries can be made from a planted bush, trimmed free form, if you have the skill, patience and a delicate hand. Most topiaries are made using common plants such as cultivars of box, arborvitae, myrtle or holly within existing pre-made topiary forms and frames. Topiaries can also be made by placing plants like ivy on a soil mixture residing within the topiary frame. Often times topiaries made this way dry out, if not watered frequently, and the moss and soil mixture can become quite dense and heavy when wet. Most people prefer to either place a topiary frame on the ground and over a plant or shrub so that the dense leavy branches of the plant or shrub can grow beneath and within the topiary frame. Simply prune the branches as they pass through the frame and soon you will notice that the rigid wire of the topiary form will dissapear as the entire frame begins to get covered by leaves. Naturally, you will want to choose a shrub or plant that will grow well in the area which the topiary will reside, such as under a tree or in a garden or inside a greenhouse. Topiaries make a great family or school project and offer an excellent opportunity to teach kids about gardening and horticulture. It's fun for kids to get their hands into the soil and dirt and prune the branches of the topiary plant. Kids receive a sense of accomplishment when the topiary takes shape and the form is entirely covered. You may find fun topiaries and topiary forms while shopping our gardening, horticulture and plant science store for kids at www.hortikids.com. Browse our catgegories including Topiary and Topiary Forms and Topiary Frames and select one which is right for you. Make it a great day in the garden!

What does Nyokki mean? In Japanese Nyokki means Grow Grow Grow! And that is exactly what these cute little Nyokki do. They grow a mini garden - and you'll love them. These Nyokki are hand made in Japan and are made from glazed ceramic. The Nyokki are irresistible and come in a delightful cast of characters to choose from - try the Nyokki Bear, the Nyokki Chick, the Nyokki Froggie, the Nyokki Monkey or the Nyokki Piglet. The beautiful shell contrasts the fun, dangly feet. The Nyokki mini garden is perfect for the edge of a shelf, your teacher's desk or just on the window sill offering you a smile whenever you need one. Each Nyokki is filled with soil media and come with rye grass seed. When the grass seed grows you or your child can band it together or have fun giving your Nyokki a haircut. Perfect for your Kindergarten class or garden center event, let the children choose which character they want so that they will be more inclined to watch the Nyokki's growth and study the way the seeds germinate. Then let them drop the little seeds into the Nyokki's soil (after making a small dribble hole), cover up the seeds with the peat and let them add a small amount of water. Kids love gardening and no better way to give them an introduction to horticulture than with a cute Nyokki! Make it a great day in the garden!

Want to create a mini garden and have some fun at the same time? Get an Eggling! A who you ask? An Eggling. The Eggling looks and feels like a real egg but the Eggling is stuffed with fortified peat, a growing medium that provides the substrate necessary to grow a flower or herb plant. The Eggling comes in a cute little gift box and includes The Eggling, a saucer and seed. You may choose from four varieties of Flower seeds including chrysanthemum, lobelia, phlox, and petunia. If you wish to start an Herb garden, choose from basil, Italian parsley, mint or thyme, then use them in your kitchen! Just follow the Eggling's four easy steps: 1. Crack open the top with a spoon. The Eggling's white porous ceramic cracks easily. 2. Place in the seed and add some water. 3. Give your Flower or Herb Eggling some sunshine. 4. When it outgrows the Eggling shell, simply transplant it into a pot to grow your Eggling mini garden further. The Eggling makes a great gift for a family member or friend. Just ship it with a fun personalized notecard. The Eggling offers an excellent way for parents and educators to teach kids gardening and horticulture. Their little mini garden will be their very own as they too can follow the easy steps and monitor the seeds germination process as the combination of water and sunshine helps their flower or herb plant grow. Make it a great day in the garden!

The Plant Me Pet is so cute! It stands on its own two feet and just looks at me with a smile! The big decision I have to make is whether to stick this nutrient filled, bio-degradable, mini garden plant me pet in the ground or in a pot and let it grow, or just place it on a shelf or table top and look at it. What is so neat is that the Plant Me Pet comes in three different garden varieties and of course three different colors: green plant me pet for melon seed; orange plant me pet for pumpkin seed; and red plant me pet for tomato seed. Designed by Marti Guixe and made in Spain, the Plant Me Pet is made of bio-degradable latex and is filled with nutrients to help the vegetable seed grow once placed in a pot of soil. Simply start off with a 4" or 6" round pot filled with growing medium like peat and stick the Plant Me Pet upside down into the soil. Add some water. It's best to gather some kids around you to help boost the level of anticipation as you wait patiently for the seeds to germinate and your mini garden to start growing! The Plant Me Pet mini garden is ideal for your Boy Scout or Girl Scout Troops because of its simplicity. Leaders can focus on the lesson at hand and the instruction regarding plant germination and watering since the Plant Me Pet can simply be placed upside down and in the ground or pot. Teach kids how to garden and all about horticulture by explaining the fundamentals of fertilization and the various stages of seed germination. A metaphorical application of plant growth can be shared by your office sales team as a fun way of motivating your group. Over time and with hard work your teammates can then enjoy the fruits of their labor with a garden plant bearing melon, tomatoes and pumpkins! Make it a great day in the garden!

The precious, little eggling looks and feels like an extra large egg, but crack its top and discover a garden ready to grow! Cultivation is easy — seeds are already sown into eggling’s fortified peat mixture, just crack it’s top (by tapping on it with a spoon), water and place in bright spot. Plants grow for up to five months in the eggling, after which it can be planted directly in soil. Extremely popular in Japan where it is hand made of white porous ceramic, the eggling (54mm x 47.5mm) comes with a terra cotta tray and an extra seed pack to insure success. Eight egglings are available: four herbs (basil, italian parsley, mint, thyme) and four flowers (chrysanthemum, lobelia, phlox, petunia). In its handsome gift box, the eggling makes a clever and delightful gift for the chef, gardener or anyone who loves the cute and curious.