During this past weekend we spent some time in the Food Project’s farm learning about peas. We planted our own seeds into small pods, and even planted some peas on their farm soil.

We learned this is their first crop to be planted for this season!

If you have not heard of the Food Project before, it is a local organization focused on creating a thoughtful partnership between youth, adults and community through sustainable food systems. They have been around since 1991, and has grown to become a nationally recognized non-profit. Click here to learn more about their impact and other amazing work they do!

We began our playdate with our families designing beautiful seed pods for pea seeds. When our designing was completed, we moved on to filling our pods with soil and then adding pea seeds into the pod. Then we covered the seeds in more soil and sprinkled some water on top. Lastly, we covered the seed pod with a plastic bag to retain moister and give the seeds time to begin their process of growing!

We learned that the leaves that grow from the pea seeds are edible and could be added to our salads for an enhaced beauty element and boost of health!

We also got a chance to see pea seeds with sprouted roots! The peas were green, round, firm, smelled like vegetables and looked like a “comma”! Those seeds were later planted in the farm soil by some of our small friends! We were able to use small shovels to cover the seeds, and gently tap on the soil to secure the them.

We learned how to keep crops safe by only walking on the tarp laid out on the soil, the spaces with the exposed soil are where we will see crops growing.

Overall, it was wonderful to experience and partner with the Food Project and their team of youth and staff. We became familiar with the work they do in our community, and it was really fun to have our small children interact with soil, seeds, and even a little rain!