Save Your Green by Planting Some Green

Last time we talked about wonderful ways to be frugal with your children over the summer and I wanted to expand on that, but also include a way to be frugal to your stomach as well! We all know that eating healthy isn’t a choice, it has to be a priority. But leafy greens and those bright red apples you buy at the store are not always the best for your wallet. Not only do they expire quickly in your home forcing you to buy fresh consistently, but even at your favorite value store the prices can creep quite high throughout the season.

One fun and frugal way to bring in the spring is to plant a vegetable garden. While spending time with your child is a definite plus, it has the added benefit of going green in your kitchen. Allowing your child to grow a garden  makes them feel accomplished, helpful, and maybe-just maybe- you wont struggle as much getting them to eat something healthy.

The easy way out:

1. For the very smallest child
For children that enjoy a little more dirt but are not quite ready to understand the seeding, you can buy preseeded mats and tapes for a perfect measure every time. You cut and your kids cover with soil and water. Voila! You can pick out a variety of seeded tapes and mats that also include gorgeous flowers. Perfect sowing every time and practically mistake proof.

2. For the medium child
Grow Kits allow your child to experience their vegetables growing from the bottom to the top. While this wont feed your entire family for the year, watching it will bring life and excitement to your child’s first garden. They can understand from beginning to end how a seed grows from a tiny speck to that full grown vegetable you enjoy.

3. For your older kids and more experienced gardeners
It's fun to do things the old fashioned way by picking out some seed packs, finding a nice place in your garden, and getting to work. Kids like dirt and getting out there to dig, find worms, and place each seed in a hole one by one can be a reward they love to earn. Make sure you find soil that is ideal for your garden, select plants that are good for your climate, make sure your vegetables will grow well together, and create a schedule for watering to help your child out.

Some easy to grow vegetables include:

• Carrots
• Lettuce
• Radishes
• Potatoes

Pretty soon your hard work (and your child’s) will pay off and you can enjoy some every day fresh food for those summer cookouts and hopefully stop investing your green into leafy green.

Happy Gardening!