January - right smack bang in the middle of school holidays. Personally these are my favourite holidays of the school year. The weather is good, we usually take our longest vacation at this time, and the kids spend their days keeping busy outside.
But there are definitely days when you need a trick up your sleeve to keep the rug rats entertained.
As many of you will know, I'm a huge proponent of getting kids to grow their own veges to encourage healthy entertainment and eating. So of course, when my kids come to me saying they're bored I get them engaged planting something or another.
At this time of year, I'm a big fan of getting the whole family involved in growing dwarf green or butter beans. This healthy snack food is easy to grow, fun to harvest and tasty to even the smallest people in your home.
You can purchase Awapuni's Traditional Value dwarf green or butter beans from your local supermarket, Bunnings or The Warehouse. Alternatively, head to our online store and get them delivered straight to your door. Our seedlings are great for planting with children because they can be unwrapped, separated and prepared for the soil without breaking the roots. They're child's play to plant and grow!
Once you've got your seedlings you need to find a spot to plant. If you're keen to prolong the fun, why not grow the beans in pots and get your kids to decorate the containers. Water based house paint is perfect because it will withstand the outside weather, is cheap and, most importantly, it washes off clothes!
Once decorated, simply fill the pots to the top with potting mix - ideally one with a slow release fertiliser to ensure the best growth for your plants. Then dig a little hole and plant your seedling. A 10cm diameter pot will fit around three seedlings nicely.
If you're planting in the garden, it pays to add a little lime to the soil. Then simply plant the seedlings about 10 cm away from each other in rows about 30 cm apart. The great thing about both of these bean varieties you don't need anything for them to climb on. And don't worry if the plants grow into each other, this just makes it a bit of a treasure hunt when you come to harvest.
Give the plants some water and then sit back and wait for harvest time in six to eight weeks. Actually, you sit back and relax - and get the little tykes to take responsibility for watering the seedlings either early in the morning or in the evening. Remind them that the more water the beans get the juicer and tastier they will be.
Beans freeze well, but I bet your kids will find the ones they plant so tasty they won't make it to the kitchen. If you get a bumper harvest and do have enough to freeze, you can team them with salads, meat and veg, pizzas, stir-fry, in fact most savoury foods you can think of.