Several visitors and staff members have asked for the names and sources of some of the plants growing in the children’s vegetable garden. I have copied the inventory below along with a very informal rating and source code. The rating scale is from “-” (no germination/poor performer) to “++” (star performer). If there is neither a plus nor minus next to the plant then it performed adequately. This was an unsual growing season. Typically tomatoes perform very well, but this year we had to remove them due to the late blight. Other plants are usually short-lived but lasted all season, such as the cosmos. So take the rating with a grain of salt. I have also listed the sources for the seeds; the key is at the bottom of the list.

One thing stands out, when I cast my eye down this list – the children planted an awful lot! This year we kept them moving pretty much non-stop. It is amazing what a group of 6 to 11 year olds can accomplish in just one day a week. I’d like to thank the parents, interns, and staff who helped the children accomplish this. Most of all, I’d like to thank the kids for doing such a great job with their gardens. It takes more than just hard work to make a garden - a really good garden needs to be fun and creative. That is what all of you brought to the garden this year THANK YOU.

Younger Gardeners

Tomato Celebrity (plants removed due to blight)
Eggplant (plants)
Marigolds (plants)
Simpson Elite Lettuce (++P)
Reggae Radish (P)
Thumbelina Carrot (P)
Carson Bush Wax Bean (++J)

Older Gardeners

Tomato Celebrity (plants removed due to blight)
Eggplant (plants)
Marigolds (plants)
Mint (plants)
Parsley (plants)
Freckles Lettuce (+P)
Watermelon Radish (P)
Mokum Carrot (++P)
Sonata Mix Dwarf Cosmos (+P)
Lilliput Mix Zinnia (+P)
Royal Burgundy Bush Bean (++J)
Nufar Basil (-J pelleted seed)
Bronze Fennel (+J)

Projects

Gloriosa Polyheaded Sunflower (+S)
Curiosity Nigella (S)
Mammoth Russian Sunflower (+B)
Envy Zinnia (++B)
Purity Cosmos (+P)
Lavender Queen Zinnia (+P)
Miss Willmott Zinnia (+P)
Nigella damascena (P)
Only the Lonely Nicotiana (P)
Zebulon Dwarf Sunflower (++J)
Sebring Zucchini (++J)
Birdhouse Bottle Gourds (+ FM, J)
Cucumber Lemon (-B)
Blueberries (plants of various cultivars)
Rhubarb (plants)
Walking onion (plants)
Moon and Stars Watermelon (+FM)
Serena Purple Angelonia (++ plants)
Junior Hybrid Sunflower (++B)
Sensation White Cosmos (B)
Sensation Picotee Cosmos (+FM)
Tea Time Series Four O’Clocks (+B)
Lipstick Nasturtium (B)
Summer Berries Mix Scabiosa (B)
Apricot Twist Sunflower (B)
Jersey Supreme Hybrid Asparagus (plants)
Mesabi Strawberry (- plants)
Paradiso Fig (plants)

B Burpee
FM Ferry Morse
J Johnny’s Selected Seeds
P Pinetree Garden Seeds
S Seeds of Change

For background on our children’s garden see Kids Grow.
Posted in Garden, Plants, Products ]]> http://gardenblog.winterthur.org/2009/09/10/whats-flowering-in-the-childrens-garden/feed/ 3 Chris Strand DF_Final-Zinnia-Lilliput DF_Final-Cosmos DF_Final-Fig DF_Final-Gourd DF_Final-Lettuce-2 DF_Final-Lettuce DF_Final-Sebring DF_Final-SFlower-1 DF_Final-SFlower-2 DF_Final-SFlower-3 DF_Final-Watermelon DF_Final-Zinnia http://gardenblog.winterthur.org/2009/07/17/july-22-introducing-the-upside-down-tree/ http://gardenblog.winterthur.org/2009/07/17/july-22-introducing-the-upside-down-tree/#comments Fri, 17 Jul 2009 19:19:41 +0000 Karen http://gardenblog.winterthur.org/?p=992 ]]> Wednesdays at Winterthur July 22nd, 11:30am at the greenhouses.

The newest feature in Winterthur’s Enchanted Woods—the Upside-Down Tree—has “roots” extending back to the very conception of the beloved children’s garden.

Hear the curious tale of how the piece came to be from John Salata, who discovered the tree, and Randy Fisher, who artfully fashioned it into its present form.

I walked in the garden around lunch time seeking refuge from the hot sun under the amazing trees of the Winterthur Garden. Under these trees on the March Bank, you’ll find hosta and ferns softening the slope. A perfect place to walk on a summer afternoon.

The children’s gardens near the greenhouses are coming along well. Last week I encountered a man and his young son as they watered the boy’s garden, taking great pride in the progress of his zucchini squash.

New this week: special Enchanted Woods-themed signs to lead you to Enchanted Woods from the visitor center. Getting there is half the fun! Let us know if they are placed properly to guide your walk. We may need to make a few modifications to the layout. The small signs are designed to clip to the existing blue “blade” signs so they are as unobtrusive as possible while adding a bit of adventure to the walk to EW.

This last Saturday, Winterthur garden interns and staff helped 21 children plant their vegetable gardens for our annual “Kids Grow” children’s gardening program. Over the next 10 weeks children and their parents will watch their seeds grow, pull weeds, thin, pinch, water and weed their way to a nice harvest of salad vegetables. By the end of the summer, bushel baskets of tomatoes and sacks of lettuce, carrots, beans, and radishes will go home with the children who, we hope, will have a new-found appreciation for vegetables and for gardening.

Gardening with children only takes a couple hours a week but the lessons they learn and the fun they have will last much longer. I will be posting information here, on our blog, over the next several weeks that I hope will encourage you and your children to try gardening. For young children between the ages of 6 and 8 years old we use a simple planting plan. Older children can be encouraged to be more adventurous and can, generally, take on larger and more complex gardens; our planting plan for older children gives them choices of different vegetables, herbs and flowers to grow.