Features
- Reading level: Ages 4-8
- Cover Type: Paperback with 176 pages
- Published by: Workman Publishing Company May 1, 1999
- Written in: English
- ISBN 10 Number: 0761110569
- ISBN 13 Number: 978-0761110569
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Book Dimensions:
9.2 x 8 x 0.7 inches
- Weighs: 1.1 pounds
Amazon.com Review
Green thumbs and non-green thumbs alike will fall in love with
Roots, Shoots, Buckets, & Boots, a remarkably fun and informative introduction to the wonderful world of gardening--and more specifically, gardening with children. Learn how to make everything from a pizza garden (pizza-pie-shaped, with herbs and vegetables for a magnificent pizza at harvest time), to a sunflower house (a secret hideaway with stately sunflowers and lovely creeping morning glories), to a moon garden ("Fragrance is the color of night"). Chock full of helpful hints, clever and artistic touches, and intriguing "recipes" (Moth Broth and Compost Sandwich, to name a few), this idea book will spark creativity and a lifelong fascination with gardening. Nine concepts for theme gardens are presented in a clearly defined yet non-rigid manner that is just right for encouraging young gardeners. Sharon Lovejoy, award-winning author and illustrator of several gardening books, including
Hollyhock Days: Garden Adventures for the Young at Heart, has a true knack for working with all kinds of living things, including children. She understands how quickly young people will be turned off by inflexible rules, and instead encourages budding green thumbs to experiment and explore, while providing them with useful guidelines and helpful information. Wonderfully earthy watercolors make this cozy book even more welcoming. (All ages)
--Emilie Coulter
Reader Reviews
This book does more than just suggest seeds to plant or tools to buy--it's full of the coolest garden designs I've ever seen that are focused on kid fun. Lovejoy presents a large number of gardens based around a central theme- some edible with veggies and herbs, some aimed more at flowers. Each theme includes a list of plants for different zones and a garden-related project or two that brings new dimensions to history, nutrition, science, cooking, ecology or art for your kids. Several of them revolve around a "tent" frame that needs a couple of adults to build it; it's sort of like a teepee, but with more supports. Once the frame is built, you can add a variety of different vines to create anything from a "night garden" tent of scented white flowers to a thickly-screened shade tent for hot summer days. Since the frame can be covered with annuals, you can plan a different garden each year. There's ideas for traditional knot gardens, proper composting, flowers for craft activities, and unusual and easy-to-grow edibles, and it's easily possible to combine a couple of Lovejoy's themes to creat your own. Lots of basics on plant care are included--even if you've never really gardened before, you can handle these layouts if you don't mind getting dirty. You also don't have to have a huge yard to apply some of these ideas; some of the projects can even happen in balcony containers. It's a great gift for your own kids or any other family you know who likes to have fun outside, and by far the best kid gardening book I've ever seen.
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