Oh, the smell of rain, fresh dirt, andspring! Doesn't it make you want to get outside and start growing things? Square foot gardening is a great, easy way to have a garden with your kids. It starts with building a simple box to house the garden; for children they recommend a 3' by 3' box to allow kids to reach everything inside. The box sits on top of the ground, on top of a weed barrier, or you can put a plywood bottom on it if you want the garden to be portable! Wood strips divide your garden into 9 squares. Then in goes your special soil blend, which is full of plant nutrients and contains no weed seeds (unlike the soil in your yard!), so the only weeds you'll be pulling out of there are whatever gets dropped inside, which is very minimal. The soil stays loose, so pulling those occasional weeds out is something a child can handle. Then kids get to decide what to plant in each square. The book is full of information, and talks about tons of different things you can plant, how many of each plant can be supported in a square foot, tips and tricks for making the small space work for growing almost anything, and how to care for and protect your garden. Easy-to-follow directions accompany each step and other fun activity ideas are included. After perusing this book, I couldn't wait to go out and get my square foot garden started with my kids, and now we are enjoying the fruits (and vegetables!) of our efforts! By Mel Bartholomew, 192 pgs, pb. ~ Megan