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Meet Mike! A Four Year Old Gardener in Sacramento (America's 'Farm-to-Fork' Capital)

Gardening is so easy, a 4 year old can do it! If you're looking for an inspirational Instagram account to begin following, we highly suggest visiting @mikes_homegarden! This charming little boy will inspire you to garden like you've never gardened before.  Below you can read our interview with Mike's Mommy, who kindly gave us an in-depth look at this adorable pint-sized gardener. 
 

What made you want to start documenting Mike's home garden? What sparked his interest AND yours to start growing your own food? 

We've been fans of homesteading for a while, and right now we are working with what we have to come as close as we can to it. With a backyard of about 800sqft in a urban area we have managed to grow food for two years now, and we absolutely love it. We come from families that know what it means to work with the soil and grow food, and we wanted Mikey, our son, to learn where food comes from and appreciate all the hard work and dedication put on farming/gardening in order for people to eat good food.  

After we decided to start the garden I immediately started documenting everything for me (since Instagram is a great tool to keep record of what you do and when you did it), and for our family because they live in the Caribbean while we live in California, and the only way for them to see what's going on at home is through photos (plus I LOVE to take pictures). I never imagined that so many people would be interested on this journey of ours. I am so glad I decided to document Mike's Home Garden through Instagram because it has connected us to a wonderful community of helpful, and kind gardeners that I never knew existed. 
 

What are some of Mike's most favorite activities/chores in the garden, besides EATING. ;) 

"Eat the fruits" was his first answer haha! Followed by "play in the dirt, water the plants and discover different bugs every day". If you have followed our journey on Instagram you may have witnessed these on photos and know that it is true. ;)
 

Has Mike shown any interest in trying something new or growing a new variety?

Yes, he has shown interest in growing every variety of strawberries available, and also in having a lemon tree for lemonade, and a raspberry bush with fresh berries for his morning yogurt hahaha! He knows that he can grow what he likes to eat, so as soon as he finds something tasty he will try to figure out a way to add it to the garden.
When it comes to try new things he is definitely up for it. No matter what vegetable/fruit you give him, he will try it. He is not picky at all and I love how much growing his own food has helped with that. Knowing how the plant starts from a seed that he sows, seeing it grow and finally harvesting the fruit makes him excited about trying whatever is growing in the garden.  And, do you want to know something curious about Mikey? He only likes his vegetables raw, and fruit fresh! If you alter any of those by cooking them, he'll most likely not eat it.  How strange is that for a kid, right? 
 

Do you plan on having a Fall/Winter garden? If so, can you elaborate on what that garden might look like? 

Yes, yes! I am so excited to have a Cool Season Garden this year for the first time! I grew some "all season" veggies last year in Summer but the pests were so bad that I wasn't able to harvest as much as I was supposed to. As an experiment, I want to grow those this year during Fall/Winter to see how the temperatures affect the amount of pests attacking my plants. That being said, some of the things I plan on growing next season are broccoli, peas, cabbage, carrots, lettuce and broad beans. We will see how that goes :)
 

Mike is growing in: California, Zone 8a (9b according to USDA webpage)

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