10 days back,
when all schools announced closure for an extended summer vacation, Minu and
I thought of a starting a children
engagement initiative.
But with the
COVID-19 getting severe and social distancing norms, we had to quickly abandon this
idea.
So I thought
of initiating the children into the wonderful world of gardening.
And there
are a lot of garden enthusiast here in SP, including Minu who has a wonderful
variety of plants and an awesome collection of Terrariums.
Here is a day
by day account of Season-1 of Lets Go Gardening .
And as we go
along I look forward to getting advice and support from all our garden enthusiasts.
I am sure there is a lot we can teach these children !
Day 2
I have planted a few seeds and put them up in the Lobby of Block 2. Pix above.
Pl encourage
yr children to chk them out and monitor their growth. Some will sprout in 3
day’s time and some might take more than 3 weeks.
Ask yr child
to keep a log and document the progress of each seed set.
Days for the
roots to grow/ days for the first green shoot / days for the plant to get 1
inch / 2 inch & 3 inches.
Today is Day
2. And Gyan for the day : Show yr kid
all the seeds I have planted . Let them feel and smell. Then take a pinch of
Methi or black eyed beans (lobia) seeds and put them in an glass of water. The
seeds that sink to the bottom are the good ones and they will germinate!!
Day 3
Dear
Children,
Its Day 3
and the Methi ,Til ( Sesame) and Green Moong have woken up !!
CHk out the
tiny roots poking out of the soil !!
Others are
still asleep.
And do you
like hot delicious Methi Paratha??
Then you can
make them yourself too.
But first
you must grow your own Methi!
And that is
very very simple and easy!! Follow this video.
Do not worry
too much about the potting mix. Any
combination of Soil, Coco Peat and organic compost should be OK.
And once your
harvest your methi, your mon/ dad can help you with the rest.
And would
you share a small piece of your Methi Paratha with me too ??
DAY 4
Dear
Children,
Check out
the action happening in this small corner of Palladian!!
And hope you
are keeping a log on the progress of these ??
Let’s try
out sprouts!
Sprouts contain a significant number of vitamins and
nutrients not present in the un-sprouted form. Typically, a week after
germination, the sprouts will have the highest concentration and
bio availability of nutrients. Seeds contain a packed storehouse of all the
important nutrients that a plant will need to grow in its initial days, so
those tiny caps are filled with important organic compounds, vitamins, and
minerals that our body can also utilize.
Take half cup each of
Green Moong & Horse Gram – Pix 1 (below)
Mix well/put in water and clean them and remove the floating
seeds.
Put in a clean container and add 3 cup-full of water. Pix 3
Seal the top with a thin wrap. Pix 4
Perforate the top for good
ventilation.
Store the container in one corner of your kitchen/or on top
of your fridge.
And let’s note its daily progress??
Day 5
Dear Children,
Chk out the action !
Lobia (Black eyed beans) has sprinted ahead closely followed by Methi.
One peanut seed is also waking up slowly.
And have you seen marigold seeds ??
Pick a few dried marigold flowers. Split the side and shell
out the thin black & white seeds !!
See Below.
Day 6
Chk it out !!
The seedlings are ready for repotting.
Pl go ahead and pick up a few small plants and repot them.
A word about the potting medium…
Cocopeat : available in dry brick form in all nursery/Amazon.
You need to soak a small piece in water
and watch it break down into fibrous fluffy powder.
Soil : Just dig up the soil from outside. Or you can buy red soil from Lal
Bagh/any nursery.
Compost : buy organic vermi-compost from Lalbagh / Amazon /
any nursery.
Perlite : Not mandatory but good to add. Perlite is
an amorphous volcanic glass that has a relatively high water content. It keeps
the soil moist. Available in Amazon.
Potting soil = 1 part cocopeat + 1
part soil + 1 part vermicompost + half part perlte (optional)
Use a 6 in or 8 inch pot and repot these
small seedlings!
Happy Gardening!!
Day 7
Dear
Children,
Lets take a
break in Gardening today.
Lets learn
Japanese !!!
Here is how
each English Alphabet reads in Japanese.
A= ka, B= tu,
C= mi, D= te, E= ku,
F= lu, G= ji, H= ri,
I= ki, J= zu, K= me,
L= ta, M= rin, N= to,
O= mo, P= no, Q= ke,
R= shi, S= ari, T= chi,
U= do, V= ru, W= mei,
X= na Y= fu, Z= zi.
Write your
name in Japanese!!!
So, my name
in Japanese sounds like …
Krishnan =
Meshiki Ariri Tokato !!
Day 8
Dear Children,
The seedlings
have grown real big.
Even the
peanuts have poked their heads out of the soil !
Except Ajwain
& Jeera. They take a long time .
You can take
these plants home and repot them in bigger pots now.
I have harvested
200 grams of Lobia in my home earlier.
And peanuts can
also be harvested if you plant them in a large pot.
And now we
come to the end of Season 1 of ‘Lets Go
Gardening !!’
So we have
learnt the foll…..
How to grow
seedlings
How to grow
Methi
How to make
sprouts
And how to
mix potting soil.
And a bonus.
How to pronounce
our names in Japanese !!!
And before
we start Season 2 of Lets Go Gardening, can all of you try out all that we
learnt so far in your homes ?? and publish
the progress as we go along ??
And once
again, pl take these plants.
End of
Season 1, Lets Go Gardening !!
And stay tuned for Season 2 !!
Krish..
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