Moko the Gorilla shares steps for starting a garden and getting exercise while you dig, plant and water!

Hi,
I’m Moko the Gorilla and I just love gardening!

Being in the garden means you learn how plants grow, turning tiny seeds into delicious vegetables. You get to be active and healthy while you dig, plant, tend and harvest your garden plot. Besides eating all the yummy vegetables you grow, you’ll also give your muscles a workout because gardening is good exercise!

If you’d like to give gardening a try, here are my top five tips:

1. Gather the tools for the job. Make sure you have everything you need: a small shovel, some gardening gloves, and a watering can. If you’re planting in a container, you’ll only need a spoon.
2. Choose a sunny place for your vegetable patch. You’ll need to pick a spot for your garden that gets plenty of sunshine and is sheltered from strong winds, like near a fence or garage. It’s best if it’s close by since you’ll need to water and take care of it on a regular basis.
3. Read the seed packets. Each vegetable seed is planted differently and needs specific care, so make sure to do what is written on the seeds packets. The packets will tell you the best time to plant, how deep to plant the seed, and how much water the seeds will needs to grow. Ask a garden center employee for help choosing seeds.
4. Start with something easy. Peas are super easy to grow and they grow quickly! Pumpkins are fun plants because they spread their vines everywhere and hide the pumpkins under their large leaves. Carrots grow underground in all shapes and sizes with bushy tops above the soil! And pick your favorite vegetables to grow, like cucumbers, tomatoes, and salad greens. (And be sure to plant sunflowers to feed the birds.)
5. No garden space? Use a container! If you don’t have room for a garden plot, you can still grow veggies in pots and keep them right outside the door, as long as there’s plenty of sunlight. And you can grow many herbs (like oregano for homemade pizza or basil for pesto) in a pot indoors by a window.

Let’s head outside and start a veggie garden! Use your muscles to dig the soil, plant the seeds, water the plants, and watch your veggies grow.

Let’s get ready to dig!

Your friend,
Moko the Gorilla

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