Gardening How to articles: Laying a Brick Walkway or Patio Gardening Fact or Fallacy? Gardening is Exercise Gardening Safely and Sensibly Get Ready, Get Set, Plant! Summer Gardening Answers Thatch and More Starting a New Garden Weeding a Large Garden Spacing in a Small Garden How much sun does your garden really need? Vegetables prefer a full day of sun, but if you live in a shady suburb you don't have to give up the idea of growing vegetables. Here are some minimum sunlight requirements: Fruiting Vegetables - 8 hours of sun This includes tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and vine crops such as cucumbers, melons, and squash. Root Vegetables - 6 hours of sun Carrots, beets, etc. Leafy Vegetables - 4 hours of sun These are your "greens" such as lettuce, spinach and collards. *Keep in mind that these are minimums. Increasing the amount of sunlight your vegetables receive will increase the yield and quality of your crop. *Even though your vegetables may get enough light when planted near a tree, they will not get enough nourishment and water. Vegetables can't compete with an established tree for essential nutrients and moisture. Garden Projects for Kids Butterfly Feeders This is a fun project that's easy enough for the kids to do, and it can be as elegant or as simple as you like. All you need is a small jar, such as a baby food or small jelly jar with a lid, and some cotton. 1. Make a small hole in the lid of the jar. 2. Fill the jar with butterfly food. 3. Screw the lid tightly onto the jar and poke a small piece of cotton into the hole. 4. Invert the jar and hang it in the garden. That's all there is to it! Of course, you'll probably want to decorate your jar with paint or decoupage. Butterflies locate their food sources by sight, so the more your feeder looks like a plant or flower, the better your chances of attracting butterflies. It may also help to cut out some fabric or plastic 'petals' and fasten them to the lid of your feeder. To make butterfly food, simply dissolve one part sugar in nine parts of water. No coloring or other additive is needed. Gardener's Tool Box Another fun project is to make a gardener's toolbox from a standard mailbox. Decorate the mailbox any way you like, and fasten it to a fencepost near the garden. A mailbox is the perfect size for a spare pair of gloves and a few hand tool. This is a great rainy day project for the kids, and it makes a terrific personalized gift.