What shall I grow

wendyphant

Right last year we had fun with our then 2 year old groeing veg especially the courgettes which grew a massive crop. we grew onions, sweet corn and potatos in a pot.

Our veg plot is in the front of the house up against the house wall and it is 8 foot long by 1 1/2 foot deep not much but we tried a bigger one and as we aren't that green fingured found it too big to keep control of and lost everything so are starting small.

Our son is 3 and enjoyed seeing things grow and seeing the results last year

I want suggestions as to what to grow this year. Things that need not intensive care but will show results easily so son can enjoy it.

The plot get all the daytime sun

Thanks x x

ps can we put the courgettes back in the same plot again - they got my son eating veg which is a massive plus

Kazipoo

Have you tried peppers or tomatoes? They are pretty easy to grow.

conradmum

I've always found peas to be a big hit with youngsters, although they do need some care to keep the slugs off them. If possible, start them off two or three to a 3 inch pot and plant them out when they're 3/4 inches high with some chicken wire for support. Kelvedon Wonder is a good early pea.

They're good for children because the seeds are large enough for them to plant themselves and they grow quite fast. Also, peas fresh off the plant taste wonderful. They simply don't compare to anything you can buy in a shop.

lynzpower

Wendy, try mange tout in a pot although youll have to wait till later in the year to plant. These are quick growers- youll get a lot for your money with these. We bought B&Q MT seeds and would use again. Flowers on them are lovely too.

WestonDave

We had a good crop of climbing french beans this year, which I would imagine you could grow quite well up canes leaning on the wall. Our kids will eat them where they tend to leave runner beans - although with both they sometimes pick the beans out of the pods. You can grow them as dwarf plants which don't climb but its harder to keep the slugs off!

With a bit of deviousness you can get carrots to grow - it helps if you make a hole for them to grow down into (especially in heavy soil) which you then fill with compost, before putting the seed in near the top. Alternatively make a slit trench by sticking a spade in and moving it back and forth to make a V which again you then fill with compost. Otherwise you tend to get rather short stumpy carrots! Plant your onions next to them to keep carrot fly off them.

If you have space for a large pot (something probably 60cm diameter by 45 cm tall) then you could get a self fertilising blueberry (Gold Traube is the variety we've got) and pot it in ericacious compost (they don't like the alkali soil in the garden itself). Ours gave some fruit first year, and the kids love them. This will be our third year on ours so we should start to get some decent crops now. The advantage of this one is that as the autumn comes on the leaves turn a fantastic red colour so it looks good as well. If you want to go down the fruit line then maybe some strawberries in hanging baskets (need the right variety) are worth considering although they'd need a fair bit of wateriing.

neilsp_2

all great ideas posted....definately grow some peas, sweetcorn, tomatoes and carrots...

you could also grow a few salad varieties for quick results in and around the house in pots: lettuce, rocket, radishes, spring onions a few herbs perhaps...

also for shear amazement and if you have room, what about a couple of pumpkins for next halloween...great!

not strictly veg but maybe a gaint sunflower growing competition for the kids..doesn't need hardly any attention

I'm growing some of this... this year www.seedpantry/littlepotter

evie451

Peas are great for kids, my stepson loved watching first the flower then the bees appearing, then the pod starting to peak through he couldnt wait to go harvesting! Also maybe try strawberries? they are great in pots and are pretty hardy, kids love them as well as they develop in full view.......the older two loved the carrots but they took quite a while to be edible and they also liked trying the herbs......sage and lemon thyme were very popular!

Primrose

Yes, you can grow your courgettes in the same plot again but they are heavy feeders so you'll need to dig in some manure. You can buy bags of composted manure from garden centres now if you can't get the rough stuff.

A simple way of growing tomatoes,if the plot gets reasonable sunshine, if you don't want to be bothered growing the tall varieties which you have to stake and sideshoot, is to grow the "tumbling" varieties which only grow about ten inches high and spread out a foot wide, with hundreds of little tomatoes. Look out for both Red Tumbler or Yellow Tumbler varieties (seed or plants).Your son might enjoy the yellow ones which also look pretty when they start to ripen. Plant 18 inches apart, water regularly and they will completely look after themselves as they don't need to be sideshooted. . A few strawberry plants might be good too. They are very hardy, surviving frost, and can be left in situ for 3 years before you need to pull them up and replace them so they virtually look after themselves..