Product Description

Plant a pumpkinseed with a child, and cultivate wonder. This simple act of reconnecting with children with nature is Sharon Lovejoy's purpose and joy and gift. Author of Sunflower Houses: Garden Discoveries for Children of All Ages and Hollyhock Days: Garden Adventures for the Young at Heart, Sharon Lovejoy is a nationally known garden writer whose books, television specials, and projects at her learning landscape in California have introduced thousands of children to the pleasures of gardening. In her newest book, Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots, she presents 12 spirited, easy-to-implement ideas for theme gardens that parents and kids can grow together. Illustrated throughout by the author's own lyrical watercolors, each garden includes a plan, the planting recipe -- seeds, seedlings, and growing instructions spelled out step-by-step -- and activities. There's the Pizza Patch, a giant-size wheel garden planted in "slices" of tomatoes, zucchini, oregano, and basil. A Flowery Maze to get lost in. A Moon Garden of night-blooming flowers, including a moonflower tent. And Mother Nature's Medicine Chest. Discovery Walks teach kids how the gardens work, and a chapter on gardening basics includes a child-friendly 10-Minute Plan for planting and maintenance, plus a list of the top 20 plants guaranteed to make gardeners out of kids.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #935037 in Books
• Published on: 1999-04-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 176 pages

From Amazon.com
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 fabulous 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

From School Library Journal
Grade 1-4-A compact treasury of gardening lore, tips, and ideas for adults to share with children. What sets it apart from other how-to books on the subject is Lovejoy's artistic, whimsical, holistic approach. She gives guidelines and instructions for a backyard moon garden that attracts night creatures, thematic suggestions for a pizza garden and a pumpkin patch, and includes the smallest of gardens in a discarded glove or boot. The author's list of top 20 plants for kids will get youngsters and their parents raring to dig. While some of the recommended plants are unusual, a generous resource list complete with addresses, phone numbers, and Web sites should make ordering easy. Other novel, thrifty advice includes how to harvest seeds and how to make your own seed tape with toilet paper, flour paste, and seeds. The sunny illustrations, informative sidebars, and nuggets of wisdom illuminate the text. Readers can almost picture Mother Nature leaning over Lovejoy's shoulder advising: "Don't forget herbal remedies" (she doesn't) or "Do include craft ideas" (she does-from a prosaic worm box to fanciful dream pillows).
Marilyn Payne Phillips, University City Public Library, MO
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Columbus Dispatch by Nancy Gilson
"This book should help launch children on a sunny, fruitful gardening experience."