Fun and Entertainment in the Garden +
There are rolling drums, spheres and crank operated models. Some compost tumblers sit on a sturdy base and tumble vertically. Some rotate horizontally on rollers. If you want to invent the next workout craze, get together with some friends and roll around those ball-like tumblers. On second thought, this could cause too much frustration – they [...]
Weeds are a Pain! Little Miss Squash Blossom™ lives in Loofahland and loves to share her adventures in the garden. Her dog Tingleberry keeps her company. She’s a feisty character with lots to learn! Stay tuned this spring for her next video: Little Miss Squash Blossom vs. The Tomato Hornworm Fairy! . Tips for Killing Weeds With [...]
How We Did It Selected varieties of cucumbers that we prefer eating. A no-brainer but try and pick the ones with smaller seeds. We like the pickling cukes as long as we don’t forget them. Don’t let them become more than a few inches long. Their skin will be like cardboard. We make many [...]
There are over six thousand farmers markets in the United States according to the U.S.D.A Agriculture Marketing Service. About once a month, we head out to the Farmers Market in Vista, CA. We love the variety and the focus on food and produce. It’s located in a huge lot in front of the County Courthouse. [...]
The Home Grown Fun Family put on a composting fair at an elementary school in Southern California. Check out how we did it. Create your own and improve on our ideas! See the video and notice that we had several learning stations and exhibits. Contact us and we can send you our plan and some tips. [...]
Bunch ‘pillars’ $2, tomato hornworms by the pound… What would a Farmers’ Market look like for birds? …. For more Tomato Hornworm Humor, checkout our fun and educational poem, ‘The Tricky Tomato Hornworm’. Also see our funny take on how to recycle human hair!
It’s back to elementary school for some space-saving tips on germinating seeds! No need for fancy seed starting domes, soil or spritzers. This method makes it fun to see how plants grow. In just a few days, your beans, basil, zucchini, pumpkin and sunflower will sprout and will be ready for planting. Some plants such as gourds [...]
Wow, this is our borage (starflower) this year. It grew so tall and full there is enough for the kids and the bees! Our girls feel like they are in another world poking around the borage bush.
Water at ground level and deeply. Don’t soak the leaves. You’ll get black spots from the sun burning the petals. Better to water once a week really deep than surface watering every day. Black spots? They say one tablespoon esach of baking soda and dish soap in a gallon of water will do wonders if [...]
A video that shows composting is fun! Kids love learning how it helps the environment and makes awesome garden soil! Kids moved from station to station and learned how keeping household waste away from landfills prevents dangerous gases from rising into the air and seeping into the ground! They were amazed that food scraps can be recycled to make awesome garden [...]
A big thanks to everyone we meet who shares their gardening, cooking and healthy living tips. With their permission, we’re passing these goodies on to the Home Grown Fun community. If you have a tip you would like to share, please add a comment below or use our contact form and we’ll clean up the [...]
Have you seen this tumbler? It’s $98 bucks at Costco! But hold off a bit before you lay down a hundred smackers on this seemingly great deal. UPDATE ON PERFORMANCE Our first batch of compost came out pretty good. It took 2.5 months to get this: 18 days after start of batch: Please watch the [...]
This bureau works great as a pretty herb garden and raised bed. We’ve got lemongrass, tarragon, green pepper, carrots, flowers and a tomato growing in this chest of drawers! It was simple to score this “Trash to Treasure Chest” - I just looked across the street. My neighbors were cleaning house, stacking tons of useable material on the curb. I hesitated at first, timidly peering [...]
After years of steaming swiss chard in a big pot, we’ve found a much easier and tastier way of cooking chard – Grill It! One cup of chopped swiss chard has only 35 calories and provides more than 300% of the daily value for vitamin K. It’s a powerhouse punch of vitamins A and C [...]
Have extra garlic for cooking from the grocery store? Whether it’s bagged or from a bulb, you can start growing your own garlic with one clove! Many gardeners will tell you the garlic you grow from a clove acquired at the grocery store won’t be as flavorful or productive as garlic planted from seed. This is probably [...]
Herbs are fun to experiment with and we hit a home run with these herbed home made pretzels. We used the following herbs in this fun recipe: Lavender Thyme Borage Spicy Oregano Rosemary Our favorite basic recipe for soft pretzels is from Christa Rose on allrecipes.com. We doubled the recipe and used unbleached flour. The most surprising discovery was that the [...]
We’ve wanted to grow our own sponges for years now ever since we learned about them from Chet at the Antique Gas and Steam Engine Museum in Vista, California. A great place for old fashioned fun and our favorite, the Fall Tractor Show. They grow all sorts of plants and sell them to keep the tractor parades going and [...]
A nice list of inexpensive garden tips that anyone can use today: 1. Heat up a metal coat hanger on a burner to punch holes in containers for drainage – makes clean holes that drain well. This works great for making homemade worm bins, if you can’t find your drill or just don’t want to. Be [...]
When I can’t get my favorite scones from Petite Madeline Bakery in Oceanside, CA, I resort to a good alternative. Chopped fresh borage leaves melded perfectly with lemon zest for a light and moist scone combining mild cucumber and citrus flavors. We discovered Fresh & Easy’s English-Style Scone Mix. It has no artificial preservatives, flavors or colors. What a relaxing morning, [...]
We layered a medium sized baking dish with filo dough and added chicken, chopped borage leaves and shallot in a tasty sauce for our own version of chicken pie. PREPARE THE SAUCE (Butter, chicken stock, white wine, shallots and flour) Add 1 tsp butter and 2 tbsp olive oil to a pan and melt. Add 2 [...]
Hi, I'm Cindy, Founder of Home Grown Fun. 
I volunteer at a humble elementary school in Southern California. I created a garden from nothing and funded it with my own money and the assistance of two kind donors - one relative and a nice lady that I've never met. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the help. I do everything I can to save and reuse materials. The students are so proud of what they're growing - and we have no raised beds or in ground plot! You can see what I'm up to on Facebook.
If you consider donating , know that 100% of your donation will be applied to the acquisition of gardening materials such as coconut coir, soil, compost, scoops, grow bags, seeds, plant starts and educational materials. Kids don't grow in small cups, they grow in repurposed containers like used burlap sacks and grow bags that allow them to plant a seed and harvest their crops in the same container. I pick seeds like braising mixes that grow quickly and inspire kids to love the process. They gain confidence, knowledge and skills that will last a lifetime! They connect with nature. For some of these students, it makes their lives better. They bring a positive attitude to the class and back home!
I promise to not use any monies donated to pay for my travel, labor or personal items. If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you!
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