I also grew up with gardening parents (mother: cacti and irises; father: roses) and grandparents (ranchers turned farmers, post Dust Bowl) and have tried to grow things almost everywhere I lived for more than a few months. One of my brothers worked as an orchardist and the other keeps up some nice ornamentals despite favoring his Porsche. Most of the younger (i.e., under-50) people in our gardening community in the Portland area also had keen gardeners as parents. One thing that occurs to me is that young children are attracted to small things that can be their "very own." One of my friends gave his daughter her own alpine trough among the many he had. So little bulbs that can be grown in modest-sized pots, even in a household with no garden, would be one thing children could do. They wouldn't have to be expensive kinds: Muscari or Crocus, little species tulips, and miniature daffodils come to mind. They could be grown in the classroom and taken home too. (This gives me an idea about what to do with the hundreds of clay pots I have stacked up after replanting my bulbs in raised beds.) A number of our schools now have food gardens and native plant gardens, but the latter look awfully messy to me and might not have the aesthetic appeal that would "hook" a novice gardener. Some Narcissus cantabricus (if you can spare some of this fast-increasing species) would suit this plan and can be pretty at Christmas; I've potted up half a dozen per small clay pot as gifts, and Cyclamen coum too (very good to have on hand for a quick exchange when you are given a present you didn't expect!). Jane McGary Portland, Oregon, USA