Seeds & Sprouts

A family-friendly blog about gardening, cooking & more.

5 Garden Focused Art Projects

“I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose, I would always greet it in a garden.” – Ruth Stout We once again find ourselves in the light of a spring tease. This time of year is plagued by mistrust in Mother Nature. Can it be? Is this random, 55 degree day really a...

All about those Microgreens!

Winter in Downeast Maine can be cold, grey, and usually, not a time to be sowing seeds; however, you can still have a winter garden experience with microgreens. They are seeds of many commonly grown plants that are harvested as soon as they develop their first real...

Planning Ahead

Written By Francie Shepherd It’s winter. That means icicles, frosty windshields, and frozen ground. Do you find yourself dreaming about the upcoming growing season? Thinking nostalgically about worms, pollinators, and next season’s pickles? Me too. I love the quiet...

Encourage Feathered Friends

Winter is a great time to encourage feathered friends to the garden! One easy way to do this is to install bird feeders around your garden and property. Looking for some simple bird feeder ideas? Why not a pine cone feeder? If you know where there are some pine trees,...

Terrariums

This is a great time of year to plant an ‘indoor garden’ or terrarium. For older children, it’s a perfect opportunity to learn about the water cycle, condensation, respiration. A closed terrarium is its own biosphere: some terrariums have stayed closed and alive for a...

Review what you Grew!

While it’s still fresh in your mind, grab a piece of paper and talk together about what grew well, not so well, pay special attention to what you’d like to try next year - and make a list. This list will come in very handy next spring when you are deciding which seeds...

How to Grow Garlic Greens and Bulbs

Adapted with permission from University of Maine Cooperative Extension in Hancock County, photos by Pammy Dyer Stewart Did you know that garlic is one of the healthiest foods out there? It also helps repel vampires -- AND it tastes great on bread. Why wouldn’t you...

Fun Facts about Garlic

During WWII garlic was given to wounded soldiers. It was known as 'Russian Penicillin'. The heaviest head (bulb) of garlic was 2 lbs 10 oz. It was grown by Robert Kirkpatrick of Eureka, CA USA in 1985! Talking about records... The Guinness world record for the most...

How to Make a Toad House

Gardening for wildlife is a great way to encourage biodiversity! There are thousands of ways to encourage birds, bees, toads, butterflies, salamanders and more to visit your garden. Having toads in the garden is VERY beneficial. A toad will not eat your garden plants...

About

Seeds & Sprouts is gardening and cooking blog for families who want to learn how to grow, cook, and eat nutritious, healthy food. This blog is collaboratively run by WHRL and the Community Caring Collaborative, and blog posts are written by volunteers!

Regular Contributors

Francie Shepherd

While Francie grew up in northwestern New York and is no stranger to a harsh winter, she’s relatively new to Maine. Finding Milbridge in 2017 with the purchase of a small cottage (and 130 acres), provided the opportunity for Francie to explore gardening at a new level!  An avid flower gardener in the northeast, she struggled to continue that love in the semi-tropical environment of North Florida, where she’s resided for the past 27 years. Now she shares her time between Maine and Florida. Spending at least six months in Downeast Maine has provided her with more time to expand her gardening interests to include growing vegetables and medicinal plants. Also an artist, she’s enjoying creating new gardens in an artistic and unique way.

Larissa Holland

Larissa loves hiking the Maine coast, hosting dinner parties, and centering her work on the intersection of community health, affordable housing and climate justice. Having grown up in Washington County and raised by generations of seasonal laborers, Larissa is very proud to volunteer with WHRL. Her favorite vegetable is a yam!

Elin Mackinnon

Elin is a consultant for the Community Caring Collaborative and is a driving force behind Seeds & Sprouts and the Downeast Family Gardens project. She has over 30 years of experience as a clinical social worker working with Maine children and families, is a horticultural therapist and an avid gardener!

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