Book Review: Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots

This is a must read for anyone who loves to garden and wants to get their kids or grandkids interested in gardening, or maybe you just want to rediscover the magic of gardening for yourself. The book includes lots of ideas for theme gardens such as pizza gardens, night time gardens, giant gardens and container gardens. It just makes me want to move to acres of land and have all the different magical gardens described in the book. With only about 150 pages, lots of pictures, and larger print, it is a very fast read. It is a perfect book for snuggle up with those kids and browse through together. I will be purchasing this book, it is so chalk full of good ideas that my kids would love, ideas that I really love too.


Some fun ideas to try from the book:

• Use your fingernail to slit the spur of a nasturtium bloom. Look inside for its hidden cargo of syrup. Sip some. Do you see why hummingbirds love it?
• Nibble lovage's leafy tops. They are a great substitute for celery in soups or salads. Snit a tall stem at the node and look inside. You will see why they make a perfect straw.
  
• Save all the extra flowers from your borage, nasturtium, Johnny-jump-up, and radish plants. Rinse then spread them on paper towels to dry. Place them in a pretty bottle to use as a rainbow-colored salad topping.
• A snowy tree cricket can help you measure the temperature. Using a wristwatch with a second hand, count the number of times the cricket chirps in 15 seconds and add 40. The total equals the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit. Compare your cricket calculations to the reading on the real thermometer.
• You and your child can make necklaces or bracelets from jewel-toned Indian corn kernels. Pick hardened seeds out of dried corncobs. Soak the seeds in warm water for at least twelve hours. Use a thick, heavy duty needle to pierce each softened kernel and string it onto heavy thread or dental floss. Tie a knot to form a circle.
  

~marisa