The garden, whatever the season, is an ideal play and learning area for children.
Get some fresh air and stretch your legs despite the Mercury which can be around 3 degrees and play but also know how to have a green thumb.
To discover
True or false: fight misconceptions about the garden
Restore order and discover the places
With the cold season, gales and frost, the garden was damaged.
Therefore, it is time to give it a makeover before spring comes.
So it's time to
collect leaves
, branches, pull weeds,
lay mulch
and water the plantations: lend a hand to make the garden neater and familiarize yourself with this place.
Then, head to the vegetable garden to
harvest seasonal vegetables
and fine herbs: after picking, learning can continue in the kitchen with peeling and cutting leeks and other apples for a homemade recipe (a soup, a tart…).
A way to
make the journey from the ground to the plate.
Read alsoFebruary: what vegetables and fruits are in season?
In winter, the garden is at rest but it is also the ideal time to
prepare for spring
.
It's time for a plan to be developed for the choice of seeds (those of beans, peas and sunflowers grow quickly so will require less patience to see the result), their arrangement and to prepare the seedlings (in buckets, in bricks empty fruit juice or in the ground).
A way to
involve the children
, to explain to them why the seeds have to be put in such a place, why certain plantations need more water than others, why certain vegetables do not grow in winter and others only in summer, and familiarize them with nature and the environment, empower them and take care of the plantations.
Read alsoGarden in winter: 6 common mistakes
But also:
Make signs
– With thick pieces of wood or spatulas that are no longer used in the kitchen or flat, wide pebbles to indicate which seeds have been planted.
Play the Picasso
– By painting palettes, terracotta pots or other corks.
The attention is not only on the ground but also
in height, a large field of observation
.
Look around and in the sky, lend an attentive ear to listen to the birds, for example the robin and learn to recognize it, as well as the other animals and insects which cross the garden or settle on the branches.
Read alsoThe house robin, a not very shy bird
Help birds and insects
Food is scarcer for them in winter.
It is possible to give them a helping hand.
The robin is characterized by its orange-red plumage on the chest.
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Build a nest box for birds
– With the help of a handy adult, the workshop for a wooden nest box will be a good trick to keep the little ones busy.
It is also possible to use an empty egg box by putting seeds in each cell and then hanging it with string on the branch of a tree.
Read alsoBirds: how to install nesting boxes in the garden?
Compose balls of fat -
Nothing could be simpler, with seeds and cereals (squash, oats, sunflower), dried fruits and oilseeds mixed with vegetable fat.
They will then be hung from the branches with string.
After some time, the birds will see them and your garden will become their favorite spot and a nice sight to contemplate with their comings and goings!
Read alsoGarden: should birds be fed in winter?
Create an insect hotel
– At the start of the season, so that future occupants, from ladybugs to wasps, can stay warm but also
contribute to biodiversity
and the
fight against various parasites
of the garden.
It can be built with different materials such as hollow stems, dry leaves, straw and earth (for bumblebees), an upturned flowerpot filled with hay, a drilled log (for solitary bees and hymenoptera) and with a waterproof roof (slate for example) to protect it from bad weather.
It is then to be placed in a quiet corner, about thirty centimeters from the ground, sheltered from the rain and the wind, in the south or south-east, facing the sun, near a flowerbed. wild and cultivated.
1
00% game
Who says garden also says games, more spaces and possibilities to have fun.
Here are some examples:
The treasure hunt
– Imagine a route with riddles that will lead to the famous grail.
For example, say that the first clue is hidden under the raspberry bush, the second a stone's throw from the potato plantations, the third near the rosebushes...
Leave room for his imagination
– By giving him a place all to himself, where he can do what he wants, such as planting seeds, familiarizing himself with the soil, etc.
A sporting course
– By creating challenges with pieces of wood, balancing on a large log, climbing a tree to retrieve an object…
And also the famous game of cat and mouse, hide and seek and other one two three sun and snowball fights.
A magical decoration for Christmas
The snowman sits in the middle of the garden.
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Before the end-of-year celebrations, the exterior can also put on its 31 with the installation of
garlands and luminous characters
, by decorating an outdoor tree or by making Christmas wreaths with small branches.
The essential snowman -
If the weather has left a thick white coat on the lawn, children can indulge in the construction of a snowman, which can have a carrot for a nose and a scarf around the neck so as not to catch a cold.
Plantations on the balcony
It is possible to plant seeds and flowers in planters or in terracotta pots and decorate them by painting them or sticking pictures on them to personalize them.
The green thumb even inside
In the absence of an exterior, it is still possible to garden and grow seeds.
To sprout an avocado stone
- Simply put horizontally and on the upper part of the stone - previously washed - four toothpicks or matches, then place its base in a container filled with water, which will be changed every two days.
After a while, roots will appear.
Plant beans
– In an empty egg box, put soil and sow one seed per area then water before placing in the sun and observe the result from the first week.
Growing lentils
- In an eggshell (or a pot of yogurt) - place the empty shell on a support to wedge it (possibly draw two eyes and a mouth on it with a marker) then place a piece of
cotton and a few dry lentils
on it before sprinkling with a few drops of water and checking daily that the cotton remains slightly damp.
A few days later, stems will appear, like hair.
A container that looks like a vegetable garden -
In a large plastic container (or a wooden crate), all you need to do is put a little potting soil, grass, branches, clay balls to
give free rein to your imagination
.
Compose a terrarium -
In a large glass jar high enough and an
opening wide enough to fit your arm
in, place pozzolan, slightly damp soil, a little sand and charcoal, a few clay balls and install in the center the small plant, such as the ficus ginseng or the fittonia, then arrange the moss balls around, some gravel and pebbles as decoration before closing with a lid.
Its ideal place will be near a window, with indirect light.