Seedlings and children both flourish in gardens.
Just ask the Coen families who got together on 9 September for a combined POP Garden Club and Strong Families workshop.
Organised by O-Hub staff to promote Child Protection Week, the event was a blooming success.
POP’s “Cultivation and Propagation” session worked hand in hand with Strong Families’ “Family Fun in the Garden” activity to show that gardening helps families grow closer—and everyone reaps the rewards.
Each participant received a seedling tray to fill with potting mixture, then plant with a range of vegetable, fruit and flower seeds to take home to their own gardens.
“The kids loved it,” said Hub Leader, Lenore Casey. “They got to put the soil in the seedling trays, then dig their fingers down into the soil to plant the seeds.”
Later this year, the children and their families will be looking forward to sampling their own carrots, tomatoes, capsicum and lettuce, and/or admiring colourful displays of sunflowers, marigolds, petunias and other blooms in their gardens.
POP consultants, Leonard Casey and Barry Preston, were also very crafty, demonstrating how to make origami plant pots out of newspaper. Participants filled their paper pots with potting mix, then planted cuttings selected from the community gardens.
After their hard work, the hungry gardeners enjoyed a barbeque lunch. Next time, they will be able to provide their own home-grown salads.