Explore your container garden (and more!) through books…
Gardens can change your neighborhood…and the world!
Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
Will is a problem solver that sees an opportunity in a vacant lot. A former basketball player, he’s no ordinary farmer. He turns that vacant lot into a garden big enough to feed the community.
The Curious Garden by Peter Brown
Liam starts tending his garden, one day at a time, in the dreary gray city where he lives. It starts small and seems daunting but Liam keeps working and, in that, inspires others. See what starting small can do.
Seed Folks by Paul Fleischman
For older readers, Seed Folks brings together the voices of 13 different people during the founding and first year of a community garden.
Gardens are more than just plants & food…
If You Plant a Seed by Kadir Nelson
When you plant a carrot seed, a carrot grows. What happens when you plant kindness? See how dedicated gardeners, rabbit and mouse, navigate the intruders that visit, eyeing their harvest.
When Grandma Gives You a Lemon Tree by Jamie L.B. Deenihan
What happens when you were expecting a snazzy new gadget from Grandma for your birthday and instead you get a lemon tree? A lemon tree! You’ll be surprised.
The Forever Garden by Laurel Snyder
Sometimes the seeds we plant aren’t just for us. How do the gardens we start and care for extend beyond just ourselves.
How and where gardens grow:
From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons
From pollination to seed formation to germination, how do plants grow? Great illustrations and diagrams for those curious about plant parts and the science of how plants grow.
Anywhere Farm by Phyllis Root
You might think a farm means lots of space, fields, and tractors but the truth is you can plant a farm anywhere you’d like. Almost anything and anywhere can be turned into a home for plants.
Lola Plants a Garden by Anna McQuinn
Book-loving Lola is inspired by garden poems she reads with her mom. She wants to grow one of her own. Follow Lola and her mom as they learn about gardening, plant a garden, and share with friends.
The Ugly Vegetables by Grace Lin
Bumpy lumpy “ugly” vegetables or “beautiful” flower gardens? Turns out both are great in this story of a girl and her mom and their neighborhood of gardens.
Cooking… and trying new foods:
Cora Cooks Pancit by Dorina K Lazo Gilmore
Cora loves being in the kitchen, but she always gets stuck doing the little kid jobs. When her older siblings head out, Cora finally gets her chance to help Mama in the kitchen.
How to Feed Your Parents by Ryan Miller
What happens when you are a food adventurer and your parents will only eat pizza, burgers, and noodles? Matilda loves to try new things and she learns how to cook, exploring her curiosity and sharing new experiences with her family.
Can I Eat That? and What’s Cooking? by Joshua David Stein
Aimed at preschoolers and school aged children Can I Eat That? and What’s Cooking? are silly and informative at the same time. Fun to read aloud and answer some of your kids burning questions like “do frozen peas grow on frozen trees?”
