With Easter just a week away it's an ideal time to create & grow an Easter / Resurrection Garden. This version uses only a few items, most of which are recycled, & is simple enough for all ages to create.
To make each garden we used:
A clean recycled plastic food tray
Small plastic yoghurt / fruit pot cut in half
2 wooden skewers
3 bubber bands or string
Compost
A few small stones
1 large pebble
Cress or grass seed
1 kitchen paper towel
We started by adding handfuls of compost to our recycled tray. To make a tomb for the garden we cut the plastic pot in half & added to the tray.
To make the 3 crosses for the garden we carefully cut the wooden skewers & used rubber bands to hold the 2 sections together. We covered the plastic pot (tomb) with more compost & created a hill shape, before adding our crosses to the garden.
We used grass seed to make our garden & sprinkled it liberally over the compost. We then cut 2 small strips from the kitchen paper (to represent strips of linen) & folded them inside of the tomb.
To create a garden path we arranged the small stones & used the larger pebble to seal the tomb. We've placed our garden on a windowsill where it can get plenty of sunlight, & sprayed it with water daily.
When Easter Day arrives we'll roll the stone to one side to reveal the empty tomb! All we have to do now is just wait for the grass to grow & turn our garden green.
You could, of course, add more decoration to your garden; moss, small pebbles, small plants etc. But I like the simplicity of this garden. It's dull, bleak appearance before the grass seeds germinate resembles the bleakness of Good Friday when all seemed lost. And as the grass grows it reminds us that what once seemed dead & bleak on Good Friday, is truly transformed & alive on Easter Day!
To explore the Easter Story alongside our Easter garden we've also been sharing these picture books together.
"The Easter Story" by Juliet David & Jo Parry
"The Amazing Journey" by Suzie Poole
"The Road to Easter Day" by Jan Godfrey & Marcin Piwowarski
"My Very First Easter Story Sticker Book" by Lois Rock & Alex Ayliffe