Kids and gardening go together when you make it easy and fun!

Fill a red wagon with the rainbow colors of the "Roy G. Biv" garden--which stands for red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet (though we've planted the colors out of order).

Children will love wheeling the garden to locations in your yard that get at least six hours of sun per day. The flowers also perform well (and will be easier to maintain) when you plant them in a sunny garden.

After you buy bedding plants, fill the wagon with a high-quality potting soil and show the kids how to tuck the root balls gently into the soil.

Keep the soil damp. Too much water, and the plants will drown (you should drill a few discreet holes in the bottom to help drainage). Too little, and they'll dry up (you may need to water daily). Add fertilizer to the water every two weeks.

Try bedding plants in rainbow colors that grow about the same heights, or vary them for a stairstep effect. We placed the tallest of our selections, a dwarf sunflower variety that grows about 15 inches tall, near the middle.

Plant List

1. Viola 'Sorbet Plum Velvet': Use two six-packs

2. French dwarf marigold 'Bonanza Orange': Use one six-pack

3. Lobelia 'Riviera Midnight Blue': Use one nine-pack

4. Variegated Swedish ivy (Plectranthus coleoides): Use three 4-inch pots

5. Sunflower 'Big Smile': Use four 4-inch pots

6. Ageratum 'Blue Danube': Use two six-packs

7. Petunia milliflora 'Fantasy Red': Use two six-packs

Quick Tip

• Do you have any extra bedding plants? Tuck them into fun containers such as brightly colored children's pails. Be sure to drill a hole in the bottom to allow good drainage.

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