"Dirt Makes Kids Grow Too!" is a project I started last year where I helped to place gardens in local daycare facilities. Gardening and kids go together in so many ways. It is a natural curiosity for children to want to know more about how things work, and have an ability to try new things.

Gardening is a way for children to experience first hand the life cycle of plants and it is also a great way to supplement the food that daycares can offer to their children.

Gardening has been proven to be able to provide a therapeutic benefit to children that suffer from depression, low self-esteem, and even ADHD.

The Square Foot Gardening method that I use is a simple and easy way to introduce children and even the providers to gardening and I have options to meet the needs of people of any type of mobility issue.

I have personally worked with people with mobility issues, developmental disabilities, elderly, dementia patients, children, and even the blind.

It seems that the only thing stopping people from getting started in gardening is the fear of too much work and frustration. I have a system and a curriculum that helps eliminate these worries and the system is small enough to make most anyone successful in their first attempt, and it is scaleable to meet the desires of the facilities that put them to use.

Each garden is three foot square and can accommodate 9 different plants, ranging from vegetables to flowers. I also have available elevated gardens to help meet the need of those with physical disabilities.

The money will be used to market to the local daycares, purchase materials to build the actual gardens, assemble the materials for the soil-less mix, supply starter plants and seeds for a variety of different plants, and deliver and set up the gardens in the locations chosen as participants. This contribution would bring gardening to as many as 7 daycare facilities in the Moorhead community.