I love when my boys decide to do a project together. With the big age difference for my kids, I know that they only have a few more years to make these memories. So when they asked if they could grow a garden in the backyard, of course I told them yes.
I should have given them a few more guidelines. Instead of planning a garden plot and preparing the soil, they dug holes in the grass and planted the seeds. What were they thinking???
They worked hard all summer. They watered the plants. They mowed around the plants. They picked bugs off of the plants. They even put duct tape over a small hole on one pumpkin to keep the bugs from going in again. It sounds crazy, but it worked.
Because our family is from Indiana, the boys wanted to show off for our Hoosier relatives. They planted corn. Because everyone knows that the only thing in Indiana is corn. (Sorry to my Hoosier readers, this is a personal family joke as we take the 4 hour drive through Indiana.) They grew the saddest looking stalks of corn that I have ever seen. But they did get three ears of miniature corn to harvest.
They love watermelon, so their second crop was watermelon. There were plenty of watermelon vines and leaves all over our back yard. But only one sad little green bulb appeared all summer.
All their hard work did pay off with one crop though, pumpkins. One third of our backyard was overtaken by pumpkin vines. The boys worked hard for those pumpkins. They learned how to tell the difference between female and male flowers. And they learned how to pollinate the flowers when the bees didn't do the job.
Finally they were able to harvest these beauties. They found some great big orange pumpkins. They were also surprised to find a few more still growing under all those vines. A little pleading with their dad and they now have a few more weeks for them to develop before they have to cut it all down. This will be a summer they remember.
I know that not everyone can let their kids learn about the life cycle of the pumpkin by giving up their backyard for a summer. If you would like your kids to learn about the pumpkin life cycle at home, check out my Pumpkin Life Cycle Activities for Primary Grades. It is perfect for Kindergarten - 2nd grade. I also offer the picture puzzles alone as a freebie.
Have a Fabulous Fall,
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