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STEAM-ALERT: 5 COMMON FOODS TO TURN INTO AN AT-HOME GARDEN


You’ve probably noticed, but — Spring Is Finally Here!!! Just in time for our home garden.


STEAM ACTIVITY: IN-HOUSE PLANTING

With the sun out and warmer weather, it’s time to begin your home garden, a great at-home STEAM activity full of practical life skills. It’s admittedly challenging to bring your plot of dirt and plants home to give your child a valuable gardening experience — or to bring your child to a garden they can plant in — but you don’t have to have a garden or even a backyard to get your growing game on. In fact, you don’t even have to go to the store for plants or seeds, simply turn your lunch left-overs or old fridge food into a fun garden.


TRANSFORMING FOOD TEACHES INDEPENDENCE WHILE RAISING SCIENCE SCORES

Much of what we eat can turn into (more) food, flowers, or both. Some will require only water, others dirt and plant-pots. After that it’s up to you whether to turn your regenerated left-over food into window-sill or potted plants, transfer them into a backyard, or bring them to a community garden to plant there. 


The benefits of this activity are myriad. Studies show that “"students who engage in …gardens show significant gains in overall grade point average, specifically in math and science" as they learn how to apply abstract concepts to real-life situations. 


 According to WebMD, gardening imparts meaningful life lessons about patience and resilience while improving focus and concentration with other widely noted mental health benefits. It also teaches agency, accountability, and interdependency while growing science and math knowledge. Learning about our food sources teaches children about environmental stewardship connecting them to nature, while the chemistry involved in growing food and flowers demonstrates the interconnection between plants, soil, water, insects, and light — Science and interdependency in action. 


GARDENING IMPROVES MENTAL HEALTH AND CREATES FEELINGS OF ACCOMPLISHMENT


Then there’s the mental health benefits: According to Growing Family, “as little as ten minutes in a natural space like a garden” can offer a mental reset, form social bonds, and lower stress levels, decreasing cortisol. Growing food and flowers from leftovers as a family activity creates a perfect opportunity to watch new life transform while creating lasting connections and memories.


Children enjoy learning through fun tasks they can perform independently that offer satisfying visual results like gardening does. They can assist with “foraging,” sprouting, sifting dirt, pouring water, or make sure there’s enough light. Child and adolescent psychiatrist Tracy Asamoah notes that "teaching responsibility helps kids develop critical-thinking skills" showing them "how to contribute to the greater good." 


This National Geographic article shares how gardening for children offers valuable life skills including requiring constant, long-term commitment and follow-through as children must maintain their plants regularly for them to thrive. Your children will thrive as well, watching something they nurtured regularly grow, leading to feelings of accomplishment and self-worth. Here’s a few options to get you started:


12 Fruits or Vegetables to Regrow from Scraps and How to Regrow 5 Common Foods below:


Beans

  • Soak dried beans overnight in water to activate germination

  • Place soaked beans on a damp paper towel in a warm location

  • Keep paper towel moist but not soggy

  • Once sprouts appear (2-5 days), transplant to soil with sprout facing up

  • Water regularly and place in a sunny location

  • Seedlings will emerge in about a week

  • Support vining varieties with stakes or trellises as they grow


*** BONUS DRIED BEANS STEAM ACTIVITY

Fill a glass jar with water and add dried beans. Their first step in growing is their veins absorbing water, a process called Imbibition. Then watch as the beans swell and the force of them growing breaks the jar. Science includes Osmosis and Diffusion, Turgor pressure, and Seed Physiology


Cucumber Seeds

  1. Scoop seeds from a ripe cucumber

  2. Rinse thoroughly to remove gel coating

  3. Let seeds dry on a paper towel for 1-2 days

  4. Plant seeds 1/2 inch deep in moist, well-draining soil

  5. Keep soil consistently moist in a warm location

  6. Seedlings should appear in 7-10 days

  7. Transplant to larger containers or garden once seedlings have 2-3 true leaves


Sweet Potato Vines

  1. Insert 4 toothpicks around the middle of a sweet potato

  2. Suspend the sweet potato in a jar with the pointed end submerged in water

  3. Place in a warm, sunny location and change water weekly

  4. Roots will develop from the bottom and sprouts from the top in 2-3 weeks

  5. Once sprouts reach 4-5 inches, twist them off and place in water to root

  6. Plant rooted slips in soil for growing sweet potatoes or enjoy as decorative vines from hanging pots and enjoy their Beautiful purple flowers.


  • Cut the carrot about an inch from its top. Ideally, you want a healthy carrot with a few greens still attached.

  • Strip back the outer greens, leaving just the center ones.

  • Cut these greens so that they are left about an inch long.

  • Put the carrot tops in a bowl with a little room-temperature water. The water shouldn’t cover the greens.

  • Within a couple of days, you’ll see fresh sprouts coming from the center of the carrot top.

  • Change the water every other day.

  • You’ll see leaves five to six inches tall in just a few weeks.

  • You can now harvest some of your greens.

  • At this point, small white roots will extend from the underside of the carrot top.

  • Move your carrot top to a container of nutrient-rich soil where it will continue growing. It’s a pretty plant and looks a little like a fern. It will fare well in a container on your windowsill, garden or patio. 

  • Watch out for the lovely flowers. These will produce seeds. Then collect the seeds — these are what will yield your actual carrots. Plant the seeds and see if you get a carrot harvest.”

Don’t forget you can also regrow lettuce from a lettuce bottom, and regenerate Spinach, Microgreens, Arugula. Onions, Garlic, and even Bellpepper seeds. 

Stay tuned for our next garden article: “Regrowing Herbs.” 

For those with more patience, check out how to regrow ginger, turmeric, and avocado. And, if you’re in it for the real (1-2 year) long game — here’s how to regrow a pineapple from a Pineapple Top!


  • Twist or cut the crown (leafy top) off a pineapple

  • Remove any excess fruit flesh and trim the bottom leaves

  • Let the crown dry for 2-3 days to prevent rotting

  • Place in a shallow container of water, with just the base submerged

  • Once roots develop (2-3 weeks), plant in well-draining soil

  • Keep in bright indirect light and water when soil feels dry

  • Be patient—a new pineapple may take 1-2 years to develop

 
 
 

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