Gardening time is Quality Time. Daddy Brad turns farmer and demonstrates how easy it is to create a box garden with your kids. With a few materials and some help from dad, your kids will turn into young gardeners just by planting a few seeds in some soil. This is one of the best activities for kids around and they are guaranteed to have fun as they plant and grow their own crops and vegetables. Check out more videos for other great outdoor projects for kids. DadLabs ep 498 is brought to you by BabyBjorn.

 

DADDY BRAD: Birds are chirping, Bee’s are buzzing, spring has finally sprung, it’s perfect time to build a box garden with your kids.

This episode is brought to you Baby Bjorn, always sporting a bumper crop of baby gear, Baby Bjorn. Building a box garden is a great activity to do with your kids, they will have a ball helping you build the box and do the planting, but they will also enjoy tending the garden as it grows. And if you are lucky they may even eat some of the vegetables.

First step, pick a location for your garden. Make sure it gets 6 to 8 hours of full sun each day, is removed from trees and shrubs, and is an area that doesn’t puddle after rains.

Next it’s time to build your box. A 4x4 box is good because you can grow tons of veggies and it is easy to tend from all sides. Make sure you use untreated lumber so that no toxic chemicals leach into the soil. All you need is 8 4ft long 2 X 6’s, 4, 12 inch long 4x4 corner posts, some 4 inch wood screws and a drill. Screw the boards to the post like so to create your box, don’t worry if it’s not perfect, it just has to be sturdy enough to hold the dirt. Once you have your frame built, put it in the chosen location.

Now it’s time to choose your soil and plants. I recommend going to a local nursery for advice, they can tell you exactly what grows well in your area as well as the best soil types to use and how to care for your plants. Unless you are an experienced gardener, don’t try to get to fancy, Belgium asparagus is probably not the best crop to start out with. And don’t just grab some dirt from the backyard and throw in some seeds. You want to grow something other than weeds, so trust the experts. This year we are trying tomatoes, squash, okra and something sweet, a little watermelon.

Next it’s time to fill the your box with the recommended soil type for your chosen vegetables and follow the planting directions accordingly. Don’t try and stuff too much into your box, you will be amazed at how much a 4 x 4 box garden will produce. Let the kids do most of the planting, they are more likely to eat it if they plant it and it’s fun to get dirty.

Next steps, give your plants some water, more at first and less as they grow, and always on very hot days but be careful not to over water. If you get good soil there will be no need to weed, so just sit back and watch your garden grow.

Final steps: harvest and eat.

Well that’s all for this episode of Quality Time, thanks to our wonderful sponsor Baby Bjorn. If you have some gardening tips go on over to DadLabs.com and let us know your secrets. Go all agro, dude!