Get arty and have a go at our new childrens competitions

On the Gardening With Children website we have just launched two new free Childrens Competitions, with a chance to win some great Wildlife and Gardening Goodies for your home or school.

1.  In the Family Zone and Kids Zone

To help the Bees in your garden why not enter our competition for a chance to win

 

 

A Solitary Bee Hive

 

 

 

A Butterfly/Bee Nectar Feeding Station

 

 

 

and a Guide to Solitary Bees

 

What you need to do

‘Bee’ creative and design a poster with the heading ‘Bee kind to Bees’  or  ‘Bee’ artistic and draw a picture of a Bee in your garden.

Send your drawing to us with an entry form before the closing date of 30^th June 2013 and our favourite will win. Click here for full details and an entry form.

 

2.  In the School Zone

Win a Scarecrow for your school garden.

 

For a chance to win one of our Scarecrow Kits complete with a hand crafted Head why not enter our competition, your Scarecrow will make a fun addition to the school garden; why not dress him in your School Uniform or a local Football Team Kit.

 

What you need to do

Simply draw or paint a picture of a Scarecrow, then give him/her a name and send it to us with an entry form before the closing date of 30th June 2013 and our favourite will win. Click here for full details and an entry form.

 

Congratulations to the winners of our last two competitions

The winner of our March/April School Zone Competition was Ludworth Primary School, Stockport, they have won a Kids Raised Bed Growing Table and the winner of the Family/Kids Zone competition was Lydia Clarkson from Leeds who won a Yeominis Childrens Wheelbarrow and a Haws Watering Can.

Well done to them, we hope they enjoy their fabulous prizes.

 

Gill

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Don’t miss out – enter our Free Childrens Competitions before the end of April

On the Gardening With Children website we currently have two free Childrens Competitions with some great Childrens Gardening Goodies to win so why not have a go before next weeks closing date on 30th April 2013.

1.  In the Family Zone and Kids Zone

This Month grab your wellies put on a warm coat, get outside, and spot 3 signs of spring for a chance to win

a fantastic Yeominis Childrens Wheelbarrow

and a pair of Childrens Embroidered Gardening Gloves

both are perfect for budding young gardeners.

For full details and how to enter take a look here.

2.  In the School Zone

All you need to do is to find 10 hidden words in our Gardening Wordsearch for a chance to win

a Kids Raised Bed Growing Table

Designed for children they are a perfect height for kids to stand at and around, to sow, grow and harvest their very own vegetables.

 

For full details and how to enter take a look here in the School Zone.

 

Have a look today and get your entries to us as soon as you can before the closing date on 30th April, 2013.

 

Gill

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Why not grow your own Strawberries this year?

This year I decided to treat myself to some new Strawberry plants, the ones on my allotment are over 3 years old and their stems have become old, woody and they will now produce less fruits, it is recommended that you replace your Strawberry plants after 3 years each time replanting in a new position or new compost if they are grown in containers.

Strawberry plants are available now in garden centres, supermarkets, on the high street and via mail order. There are so many different varieties to choose from, cropping at different times in various shapes and sizes but all of them equally delicious, why not plant a few different varieties to give a continuous crop over the Summer months and into Autumn.

Bare root runners

Yesterday a white padded envelope came through the front door, it was from one of the large seed companies, inside there were growing instructions and a small white bag containing my new Strawberry runners they didn’t look very inspiring but with a little care and attention they should produce some delicious Strawberries this Summer.

Strawberry Table

The variety I chose is ‘Buddy’ it is new this year and is ‘ever bearing’ or ‘perpetual’ which means that it will produce Strawberries over a long growing period from Spring into Autumn. After their arrival I put my bare root runners in water straightaway and then planted them individually in pots in the greenhouse in good compost to become established before planting outside. Strawberries can be grown practically anywhere – in the ground, raised beds, strawberry tables, pots, hanging baskets, troughs, window boxes and in Strawberry bags/tubs and are ideal for children to grow.

Strawberry Planter Bag

Click here for a full guide to growing your own Strawberries.

Gill

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Have you ‘spotted’ our NEW COMPETITION?

Why not have a go at our two free Childrens Competitions.

1.  In the Family Zone and Kids Zone

This Easter grab your wellies put on a warm coat, get outside, and spot 3 signs of spring for a chance to win

a fantastic Yeominis Childrens Wheelbarrow

and a pair of Childrens Embroidered Gardening Gloves

both are perfect for budding young gardeners.

For full details and how to enter take a look here.

2.  In the School Zone

All you need to do is to find 10 hidden words in our Gardening Wordsearch for a chance to win

a Kids Raised Bed Growing Table

Designed for children they are a perfect height for kids to stand at and around, to sow, grow and harvest their very own vegetables.

 

For full details and how to enter take a look here in the School Zone.

 

The closing date for both competitions is 30th April, 2013.

 

Gill

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Get organised for a busy gardening Easter Weekend

Before the growing season gets into full swing get organised, make plans and prepare for a busy Easter Weekend and a productive year ahead in your garden.  

Tools   Check, clean, oil and replace any that are damaged or worn, make sure that you have the right tools for all your jobs this year.

Propagators   These will soon be in full use, test yours early to check it is working properly and give it a good clean, hygiene is very important when sowing seeds. Now is an ideal time to buy one, it will be invaluable throughout the year and in years to come.

Pots, Trays and Compost   Organise your Greenhouse/Potting Shed sort through your pots and trays throw away any broken ones, give the rest a good clean as well as your potting tray, order new Seed Compost and Vegetable Compost, last year’s opened bags may not be suitable for starting off your new seeds and plants.

Watering Cans & Water Butts   Drain and clean out, check the rose on your watering can and replace if necessary, don’t be caught out by the weather invest in a Water Butt, remember the drought we had in Spring 2012.

Store your seeds in a Seed Tin

Seeds   Take stock of your seeds, discard any that are opened and out of date and order more while stocks are still available, store in a suitable Seed Tin to protect them from Mice, Pests and moisture.

Plan   Sit down with a nice cup of tea and draw a plan of your garden/vegetable patch make notes on crops that did/did not do well and where your crops where grown last year, make a new planting plan for this year rotating your crops to get the best results and to avoid problems.

 

Read   Gardening books are invaluable for reference, ideals, hints and tips for your garden/vegetable plots.

Order Early   If you need any gardening products order early whilst products are available to make sure that you have everything you need.

Make your plans and preparations now, Easter is early and it’s the busiest gardening weekend of the year, let’s hope it’s warm and dry.

Gill

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Gardening on a Budget?

We have got just the thing…

hot out of our warehouse this Spring is our new range of

Thrifty Raised Beds

At the Recycleworks we have been thinking about how to Grow your Own vegetables and fruit as easily and economically as possible whilst still getting the maximum yield from a wide range of crops, so we have developed a range of budget Raised Beds which will appeal to everyone:

• Families – the family budget is being pinched, now is the time to Grow your Own and reap the benefits
• The first time gardener – perfect starter beds and entry into Grow Your Own
• The accomplished gardener – a great product to extend your growing area
• Schools – affordable and well within the budget
• Community Groups – great for getting people involved in gardening, socialising and working together.

The beds are available in 3 sizes:

1. The Thrifty Classic – 80cm x 80cm
2. The Thrifty Long – 80cm x 105cm
3. The Thrifty Big Square – 105cm x 105cm

with a choice of three heights for each size: 14cm, 28cm, and 42cm and a choice of two colours : Chestnut or Green.

Assembly instructions are supplied with each Raised Bed.

To help you grow the maximum yield and to remove the guesswork if you are new to Grow Your Own each raised bed also comes with a growing/planting guide including ideas and tips on suggested crops, planting, positioning, watering and feeding.

To warm up the soil before planting why not add a Compost Duvet or a Raised Bed Watering Kit to make watering easier and more economical in the long summer months.

Prices start from £15.55 making them very affordable to everyone.

You will surprised at how much you can grow in such a small space – you can’t beat the taste, texture and smell of freshly picked produce.

Gill

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School Jubilee Tree planting and holiday preparations for the school garden

Last week the Eco Committee members at Thomas’s School were invited by the Parish Council, in co-operation with the Borough Council, to plant a tree as a final act in the local Jubilee celebrations. The tree, an English Oak, was planted in open space land in the village so that it can be enjoyed by future generations and there will be a plaque put next to it to commemorate the Queens Diamond Jubilee. The children (including Thomas) put the top soil around the tree and sprinkled wildflower seeds around the base.

Thomas and the Jubilee Tree

Thomas has been on the Eco Committee this year and has thoroughly enjoyed being involved in the Eco work at school as well as providing his own input with regards to the wildlife that is in the school grounds. The School has put up bird boxes one of which has a camera, a bird table for feeding the birds, a nesting material holder, fat ball feeders and other bird feeders as well as insect houses.

Pembroke Nest Box

The school gardening year has come to an end and preparations have been made for the summer holidays. All the young plants in pots have been planted in the ground, climbing plants have been tied in and supports provided, and the raised beds have been weeded and covered with netting to deter unwanted visitors.

Enviromesh Netting

During the holidays Thomas and I will make regular checks to keep the garden ticking over until September this ties in well with feeding the school chickens as Thomas has been put on the ‘chicken rota’ again which I have to say I enjoy doing as much as he does. We are both looking forward to those super fresh boiled eggs!

Click here for our top 10 tips for caring for the school garden during the holidays.

Love your environment and enjoy your holidays

Gill

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Quick growing crops for children

I had an ‘Ask the Expert’ enquiry this week from Natalie who wanted some advice on which seeds to buy from our website that she could grow at her son’s nursery garden. She wanted to grow things that the children could eat at their snack time but the only draw back was that they had to be able to pick them between now and the end of June before they break up, here was my advice:

As you are limited for time (approx. 9 weeks before the end of June) the quickest things to sow/grow/harvest would be vegetables/herbs that are grown for their leaves rather than their fruit (tomatoes) or roots (carrots, beetroot).

Mustard and Cress

Mustard and Cress are perhaps the easiest and quickest to grow and can be eaten in approx. a week, these can be sown little and often, sow indoors not too thickly on a thin layer of moist compost or moist tissues, cover with a piece of paper until they are 1”(25cm) and then cut when they are about 2”(50cm).

Salad Leaves (Red & Green mixed) are very quick to mature and their different coloured leaves look attractive.

Coriander

Herbs fit nicely into this category and our Herb Variety Pack contains:

Coriander, Basil, Dill, Rocket

Basil

available to buy separately is Parsley (this can sometimes be slow to germinate)

Essential Propagator

 

To get them all off to a good start I would sow them in Pots/Trays in a Propagator or on a warm sunny windowsill. When they are big enough to handle re-pot them into Larger Pots/Trays with more space to grow, again returning them to the windowsill until they are large enough to plant outside when the weather if favourable.

 

They can be planted into Containers, Hanging Baskets, Wall Baskets, Window Boxes or Grow Bags. They are ideal for planting into Raised Beds, Salad and Herb Beds, Corner Raised Beds or Mangers.

It is advisable to protect them with Fleece if any frost is forecast until they are well established.

Salubrious Salad and Herb Bed

For best results they should be in a warm, sheltered and sunny position.

I hope that Natalie and all the children enjoy sowing and growing their seeds and they enjoy eating the lovely fresh leaves too.

Happy Growing

Gill

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Grow your own taste of the Mediterranean – Garlic

To me Garlic is the taste of the Mediterranean but it can be grown in the UK so why not have a go at growing your own instead of buying foreign grown bulbs from the supermarket. Garlic is an easy and undemanding vegetable to grow making it ideal for children, with tactile and nicely sized cloves to plant. I am sure they will want to plant it once they know it’s the main ingredient of garlic bread.

Garlic is a fantastic ingredient in cooking, add at the beginning for a milder flavour or later on for a stronger taste. As well as having a lovely and unique flavour it has many health benefits too, being a recognised superfood it has been shown to lower blood fat and cholesterol levels, help reduce blood pressure as well as combating bacterial, fungal and viral infections. Garlic is rich in Vitamins C and B6, carbohydrates, and fibre and is also a good source of several of the essential minerals, zinc, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, and potassium.

Garlic can be planted in Winter or Spring. Spring planted bulbs should ideally be planted no later than the end of March in order for them to mature so get your bulbs ordered now, supermarket bulbs are not recommended as the chances are they have been grown in a warmer climate and will not thrive in our British weather thus giving a disappointing crop.

Garlic takes up very little room and can even be planted between flowers, in window boxes or containers but will need to be watered often in dry spells. Garlic needs a sunny position in well drained soil, to prevent waterlogging and feed the soil dig in plenty of well rotted manure or garden compost, they are ideal for growing in raised beds especially if your soil is particularly heavy. Split your garlic bulbs into individual cloves immediately before planting, make a hole with a dibber to avoid damage to the base of the bulb and plant approx. 2cm below the soil surface, 10cm apart, leaving 15-20cm between rows. Cover with fleece to protect from frost and also to stop birds from pulling them out (until they are established). Water during dry spells and keep weed free. Harvest when the leaves turn yellow, loosening the bulb underneath with a trowel taking care not to damage the bulb. Place the bulbs somewhere warm and dry and they can then be stored for up to 3 months.

So why not give them a go before it’s too late. We have four delicious varieties to chose from all suited to the British Climate, Solent White, Vigour, Germidour and Elephant.

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Eat Vegetables at their Seasonal Best – Try our Cauliflower Cheese Bake

If you have been growing a crop of  cauliflower this year, you’ll hopefully be enjoying the harvest round about now.  vegetables taste so much better when they are eaten in season, and nothing beats harvesting your own tea!  The taste and sense of satisfaction is beyond compare.

If you want to grow your own vegetables visit www.recycleworks.co.uk for all your gardening needs.

This is a great heart warming family recipe, and is one easy way I manage to get my kids eating one of their 5  a day.

Recipe

1 large, creamy-white cauliflower, trimmed and broken into florets
25g butter
25g plain flour
550 ml milk
150g cheddar Cheddar, grated
2 tbsp crème fraîche or double cream
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
25g fine fresh white breadcrumbs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

Method

1. Cook the cauliflower in boiling water until it is tender but not over-cooked
2. Grease an oven proof dish and then add the cauliflower
3. Make the cheese sauce by melting the butter in a sauce-pan.  Add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon to make a paste, but do not allow to go brown or burn
4. Add the milk a little at a time and keep stirring the mixture
5. When all the milk is added simmer for a few minutes until the sauce thickens and is creamy.  Stir regularly to avoid the sauce sticking to the bottom of the pan
6. Remove from the heat and add the cheese, crème friache and mustard
7. Pour the sauce over the cauliflower
8. Mix the breadcrumbs and a handful of cheddar then sprinkle over the top
9. Bake at 200 C for around half an hour or until browned
10. Serve with crusty bread and enjoy!

Raised beds are the perfect way to grow vegetables, and The Recycleworks Ltd  specialises in the manufacture of a large selection.  The soil in raised beds is easier to maintain and is generally lighter, better drained and warmer.  Gardening in a raised bed can also reduce pest damage and all in all crops often do better.  It’s also easier  for the gardener with no more heavy digging.  The Raised Beds from www.recycleworks.co.uk are made from FSC wood and with no screws, no nails and no holes to dig, they can be assembled in minutes.  

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