Crafty Kids Gardening Activities

Tin Can Bunny Planters

 

What you need

  • 1 recycled tin can
  • 2 pieces of white felt
  • 4 pieces of orange felt (for beak and feet)
  • 2 pieces of pink felt
  • 2 small felt circles 
  • Pink spray paint
  • Yellow spray paint
  • 2 googly eyes
  • 1 large white or pink pom pom
  • 1 small pink pom pom
  • A small potted plant (Spring daffodils look great, tulips would too!)
  • Glue gun
  • Scissors
  • Black sharpie
  • Daltons Easy Lift Potting Mix or Daltons Premium Potting Mix
  • Spoon 

 

How to make it

  1. Make sure you thoroughly wash and dry your tin can. If there are any sharp edges, carefully press them down into the can using the flat side of a butter knife.
     
  2. In a well-ventilated area, spray paint the can white and allow to dry completely. This is very important or else the paint on your planter will smear.
     
  3. Make the bunny ears. Using a white piece of felt, fold it in half and trace a bunny ear onto it. This bunny ear should use up the entire half of the piece of the felt. Carefully cut the bunny ears out and when you are done, you will have two white ears.
     
  4. Now, using a pink piece of felt, fold it in half and trace a smaller bunny ear onto it. This pink piece will be the inner ear and will nestle into the white ear, so it should be smaller than the white ears you just cut out. Carefully cut the pink ears out and when you are done, you will have two pink ears. Now, glue the smaller pink ears onto the larger white ears and set aside.
     
  5. Make the bunny feet. Using a white piece of felt, fold it in half and trace a bunny foot onto it. Look closely at the feet in the picture. The “top” part is rounded whereas the bottom part is cut at a 90-degree angle. This will allow the feet to line up properly on the bottom of the can. This bunny foot should use up the entire half of the piece of the felt. Carefully cut the bunny feet out and when you are done, you will have two white feet.
     
  6. Now, using a pink piece of felt, fold it in half and trace 3 toes and 1 sole onto it. These pink pieces will lay on top of the white feet. Carefully cut the pink parts out and when you are done, you will have 6 pink toes and 2 pink soles. Now, glue the pink toes and soles onto the white feet and set aside. You will also need to cut out a bunny nose from the pink piece of felt.
     
  7. Wait for the spray paint to fully dry. Then use your glue gun to affix the bunny ears and pom-pom tail to the back side of the planter. Glue on googly eyes and the felt nose. Using a sharpie, draw a mouth on to your bunny rabbit planter.
     
  8. Wait for the glue to set then, using a spoon, ¾ fill the planter with Daltons Premium Potting Mix. Then gently insert the potted plant and top with soil mix.

Originally sourced from We Know Stuff

Garden Bees

What you need

  • 1 recycled tin can
  • 2 bottle tops
  • 6 buttons
  • Metal wire
  • Paint and paint brushes
  • Plastic bottle
  • Stick
  • Glue gun
  • Pliers, scissors, gimlet

How to make it

  1. Paint your can with yellow paint. Once dry paint the black stripes.
  2. Use a gimlet (or hammer and nail) to create 4 small holes from where the legs will come out and 1 bigger central hole in which we will insert the stick.
  3. Make the legs of the bee. Slip a piece of wire (8 cm) in the holes of each button. Block it there, making a small loop with the pliers, so that the wire cannot come out of the buttons. Do the same with each of the holes previously made in the can so that the legs hang from four corners of the can.
  4. Cut a piece of plastic out of the bottle.
  5. Draw the wings with a marker, then cut them out.
  6. Glue the wings to the bee’s body. (If you scratch the plastic with sand paper first, the glue will attach better.)
  7. Hot glue gun the two bottle tops to make the bee’s eyes. Then glue a button inside the bottle top to make the pupil.
  8. Slip a stick into the bigger central hole underneath the bee. Your bee is now ready to live in the garden or in a flower pot.

Originally sourced from Crearescout

Popsicle Stick Sunflowers

What you need

  • Craft sticks
  • Hot glue and glue gun
  • Cardboard cereal box
  • Scissors
  • Pencil
  • Acrylic paints
  • Paint brushes

How to make it

  1. Trace and cut a small circle from the cereal box. 
  2. Cut several wooden craft sticks in half. 
  3. Using your hot glue and hot glue gun, arrange the craft sticks around the cardboard circle and affix in place with the hot glue.
  4. Repeat with an additional circle of craft sticks so you end up with the sunflower shape. Glue one full stick on for the stem.
  5. Have your child paint the flowers using paint colors of your choice.
  6. Once done you can ‘plant’ them in a pot or add them to your garden. Try covering each flower with Modge Podge or something similar to protect it from the elements if you are going to keep it outdoors.

Originally sourced from Boy Muma Teacher Muma

Milk bottle watering can

Turn an old milk bottle into a watering can by poking holes in the lid.