Jake and Jasmines Herb-Gardening Project

Jake and Jasmine enjoy hanging out together, because they always find something interesting to do. They prefer to spend most of their time outdoors, because there is so much more interesting things to do then inside. They always find somewhere nice to go to, or something interesting to do. A few days ago they had visited Nan Fran to ask her about her strawberry cake recipe, which Jakes mom wanted to try making.  They showed up exactly on time for lunch and Nan Fran treated them with “pasta with pesto”. The macaroni were very tasty with this green sauce and Jasmine asked what is it made of. Nan Fran explained that it is made from basil that I grow in the garden.

“I will give you the seeds. I have some here in my shed” suggested Dan, with the happy smile that comes up on his face every time someone talks about growing plants. Jake and Jasmine decided to have a go and see what happens. They decided to do  just one pot on the window-sill in  Jasmines room, they chose a  beautiful pot which she had painted with pictures of sunflowers in the art and craft classes at school.

You could have your own Herb- gardening project at home too.

You just need a pot, soil, few seeds and the approval of your parents.

• You need to gather some soil from around the trees and to mix it really well with a little bit of compost, before they put it in the pot.
• Mix it with about half a handful of seeds, then put it very carefully in the pot and cover it with just a little bit more soil.
• For the first week you need to water the seeds every day.
  

• After the baby herb-plants show up, they need to water every second day, or else the flavour of the herb could be reduced by too much growth
  

• You can follow the same instruction for other herbs like Parsley, Dill or thyme
• You need to take care of these plants for 6 weeks now. This is how long it would normally take before the basil is ready to be picked.

Jasmine suggested that they make a ”basil diary” and trace every stage of the plants life.

“Yes, that’s great idea, It would be even better if we plant some more herbs, different then basil and find out the differences about how they grow!” let’s call it “The herb- gardening project”. Sounds like real fun!” said Jake

Dan The Gardener

Welcome to the Blog Spot of ‘Dan The Gardener’
and his friends. They are trying to help the
environment and need your help too! In fact the world
needs all of us to join in.

You can help by taking the time to read the
information and tips that Dan and his friends have to
give on this Website. Have a look around, get to know
the characters, and see what they each have to offer.
Play a few games, and watch out for ‘Florence the
Earthworm’ popping up with handy hints.

Join the Dan The Gardener Bugs Club for Free,
it’s not only fun but free as well! We hope it will
be the biggest children’s environmental club
on the planet and want you to be part of it. As a member you become a friend of the environment, learning about how to save & respect our planet,
get to know our fun characters and what they have
to offer and receive our Free Quarterly newsletters are sent out via our Bugs club offering an update of information and the latest competition.

www.danthegardener.co.uk is the online home of Dan The Gardener and his friends. It is a children’s character based environmental project with the aim of teaching children about the natural world in fun and exciting ways. We put a lot of emphasis on using the space you have no matter how big or small to grown your own fruit, vegetables, herbs and other favourite plants.

Dan and his friends live in a coastal village called Three Little Woods surrounded by a great Forest, amazing creatures and fantastic friends and family. It is a very eco friendly village powered by on/ off shore wind farms and solar panels, all of the vegetables, fruit, nuts and medicines are also grown in the village allotment.

Each character has their own specific topic in which they offer tips, advice and information about plus Lots of interesting facts

Dan The Gardener works with the plants and wildlife, Recycle Michael offers recycling information, Jennifer Pickles is Three Little Woods school teacher and always has something interesting to say.

Nan Fran (Dans Grandma) is in charge of healthy eating and fun recipes, Georgie The Magpie, Gigi the Butterfly and Queenie The Bumblebee take care of the sky including seed travel, pollen and honey.

Florence The Earthworm and Digger The Mole keep us updated about everything under the ground including compost and root systems.

The website itself is a great resource for children as it offers a wide spectrum of easy to understand practical information.

Dan The Gardener also has an online Eco Shop which has interesting and environmentally friendly gifts for great prices.

Gifts include pens made from recycled paper, book marks made from recycled tyres and pencils made from recycled video cassettes.

Be sure to check out the online home of Dan The Gardener at and remember the join Recycle Michael following the Three R’s Reuse, Reduce and Recycle. Why not join our club it is FREE