Getting uptight about a few leaves on the lawn turns raking back into work. If there is a fun reward, such as jumping in the pile, or filling pumpkin bags, work gets done a lot faster and everyone enjoys it more. Remember your aim - encouraging a love of gardening. Use those teachable moments that come up too. When we pull up plants, we look at the roots.
Different plants can have different kinds of roots.
We talk about what the roots do - they soak up water and food so the flowers can grow, they secure the flower plants into the dirt so the wind can t blow them away, and so on. Talk about how plants break down into compost. Compost is the organic matter that all garden soils need more of. It also feeds the worms which tunnel around bringing needed air to the roots of your plants. Of course, worm waste helps build the soil too.