Empty Tomb ~ Easter Garden

Almighty and ever living God, whose Son Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene in a garden and called her to be the first witness of his Resurrection:  we beseech thee to bless this humble garden wherein we have a remembrance of the mighty acts by which we have been saved; grant that all those who see it may ponder and adore the glory of the Cross and the mystery of his Resurrection and may sing with joy the victory hymn; through Jesus Christ our risen Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen ~Station at an Easter Garden

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This a wonderful Lenten/Easter project for the entire family.  All ages will enjoy it.  I recently used this as a craft for my Little Flowers’ study on the virtue of fortitude.

The Empty Tomb Garden provides a visual reminder of what we are preparing for during Lent, Christ’s Resurrection.

An Easter garden has three essential features:  a mound with at least one cross to represent Calvary; a stone or stone structure to suggest the empty tomb; and lots of live greenery/flowers.

The children will have an opportunity to tend and nurture their gardens during Lent and beyond.  They can meditate on Christ’s passion and offer an ejaculation while tending to their garden.

We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee.
Because by Thy holy Cross, Thou hast redeemed the world.

The grass will grow within days.  It is wheat grass and can be eaten.  It symbolizes new life.

The children will remove the stone on Easter morning and rejoice.

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I found my inspiration throughout the internet and Pinterest.  House of Joyful Noise provided a great tutorial.

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Supplies:

Garden

• Seed Starting Jiffy Mix ($3.80/bag – 1 bag made 14 mini gardens)
• Decorative rocks ($5.59/large bag of Mountain Granite from HomeDepot – 80+mini gardens.  $1/small bag of decorative rocks from the Dollar Store – 2-3 mini gardens)
• Gravel (this is used as a bottom layer, not much is needed.  I took my rock from my home garden)
• Wheat Berry ($.77/lb – 2lbs – 40 mini gardens.  I found my wheat berries at Winco in the bulk bin foods.)
• Dessert Plastic Plates or shallow pots ($9.89/100 plates.  I used plastic plates because they were the most economical choice for a large group.  I found my plates at Smart-n-Final)
• Mini Terracotta Pots ($.24/ea at WalMart)

Crosses

• Popsicle sticks ($1/150 sticks at the Dollar Store)
• Brown Paint
• Hot Glue Gun

Misc.

• Water
• Bucket
• Spray Bottle
• Hand Shovel

Directions:

Garden

mix the seed starter with water

position tomb/terracotta pot in desired location on plate/pot

lay down the gravel on the plate, securing the pot into place.slightly build up the gravel for your hill.

top the gravel with soil

cover the entire soil with the wheat berries.  press the wheat berries into the soil.

add a layer of soil on top of the wheat berries.  press down firmly.  (this step is optional.  it will slow the growth of the wheat grass.)

clean the plate.  remove the wheat berries from areas that you do not want grass to grow.

create a path from the tomb with decorative rocks.  this represents how the disciples ran to the tomb on Easter morning.

add decorative rocks as desired

insert the crosses

The grass grows faster with less top soil.  The garden in the left of both pictures had a thick top soil packed tightly over the wheat berries.

Crosses

Paint the popsicle sticks your desired shade of brown or create crosses from sticks and twine.

I chose popsicle sticks since I had to make over 100 crosses. I did not hand paint each stick.  Instead, I created a paint wash. 

add water to brown paint in a plastic pin.

run popsicle sticks through the paint wash.

bake at 350 for 5-8 min for a quick set of paint

break off the tips of the popsicle sticks for the small cross section.  break the stick in thirds.

break off the tip of the popsicle stick for the vertical piece.  the round part will go into the soil

hot glue the cross together

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We made larger Easter Gardens for the home.

inspired by Ann @ A Holy Experience

This garden sits on our front porch.  It will serve as a reminder to all who enter that we are preparing for Christ’s resurrection.

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Empty Tomb/Easter Gardens:

• Easter Garden I – Catholic Culture
• Easter Garden II – Catholic Culture
• Calvary Hill Planting
• Make an Easter Garden: A Visual Parable
• Celebrating the Empty Tomb
• Making an Easter Garden
• Our Easter Garden
• Creating an Easter Garden

Lenten Link Up ~ Catholic Icing