Have you ever thought of building a bean tent? A bean tent is full of fun. You can eat beans and play with them. Then how to make a bean tent? Here’s how.
First, get a packet of bean seeds. Also get six thin poles, each at least six feet long.
Next, set up the planting space in the garden. On the ground, outline a circle three feet wide. Then pull weeds and turn over the dirt inside the circle with a garden fork.
Rake the ground flat. Then place six poles around the outside of the circle with their tops leaning into the midpoint. Leave a bigger space between two poles so that your tent will have an opening. Tie the pole tops with strings. Now you’ve got a pole frame.
When days start getting hot in late spring, presoak your bean seeds. Plant them by placing six beans at the base of each pole and poling them an inch into the ground. Place dirt over them and water them daily. In less than ten days, your bean plants will sprout.
When the bean plants are three inches high, thin them out. Take out the little ones, and leave three strong plants at each pole. The plants must not be overcrowded.
Keep sprinkling them with water, and see how fast they grow. Your plants will race up the poles.
By midsummer your bean plants will reach pole tops. The frame will be overgrown with big leaves and bright flowers. These flowers will turn into beans you can eat. You will have plenty of green beans to pick and eat.
Your bean tent is like a house with leaves and flowers growing overhead. It is a place for shade on a hot day. You can also play hide and seek there or just sit inside and read.
Activities:
1. Illustrate how to build a bean tent. Then explain your illustrations.
2. Watch the video to learn how a bean tipi is made. What other fun tents could be built in your backyard? Discuss with your buddies.
