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YOU’LL NEED A WEDGE TO HANG THAT DOOR
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  1. Home
  2. DIY

Make a caterpillar garden for the kids

They'll love watching it sprout! - by Better Homes & Gardens
  • 11 Feb 2021
Make a caterpillar garden for the kids

Entice your kids outdoors by helping them grow their own furry pet caterpillar. It’s a cinch to make! Simply fill a stocking with grass seeds, then it needs only a daily watering and a spot where it can bask in the sun. In about a week, your kids will delight in witnessing their new pal sprout a grassy coat, and enjoy trimming and styling it, too. Make just one or create a whole furry family!

Gather your supplies

  • 5 cups seed-raising mix
  • 5 Tbsp quick-sprouting grass seeds (such as rye-grass)
  • 2 paper or styrofoam cups n Nylon knee-high stocking
  • 4 hair ties
  • 2 googly eyes
  • 9 pipe-cleaners
  • 2 mini pompoms
  • Bucket
  • Scissors
  • Garbage bag
  • Large tray
  • Hot-glue gun
...

Here's how...

Step 1

Put seed-raising mix into bucket and add grass seeds. Stir mixture well to combine, making sure seeds are evenly distributed throughout mixture.

Step 2

Cut bottom off 1 cup to create a funnel, then insert into mouth of stocking. Holding stocking in 1 hand, use other cup to scoop seed mixture into stocking until it’s full.

...

Step 3

Remove funnel, knot end and trim off any excess. Using hair ties, divide stocking into 5 sections to form your caterpillar’s body.

...

Step 4

Fill bucket with water, then submerge stocking for at least 10 minutes. Remove and put on a large tray. Carefully slip tray inside garbage bag and set aside overnight.

...

Step 5

Remove stocking from garbage bag and place in a sunny position on an outdoor table or bench. Water daily. In 7-10 days your caterpillar will start to sprout hair.

Step 6

Once grass appears, add eyes and antennae. Cut a pipe-cleaner in half then, using hot-glue gun, attach a googly eye to each. Insert both into stocking at untied end, curling up ends so your caterpillar’s new peepers sit up. 

Step 7

To make antennae, twist 2 pipe-cleaners together like a candy cane, then loop end of 1 pipe-cleaner around a pompom to secure it to top. Repeat to make other antenna. Insert both into stocking behind eyes.

...

Step 8

Cut 4 pipe-cleaners in half. Bend into legs, then insert along stocking on each side.

Step 9

Trim grass with scissors to define sections and give your caterpillar a cool hairstyle.

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YOU’LL NEED A WEDGE TO HANG THAT DOOR
Watch 6:32

YOU’LL NEED A WEDGE TO HANG THAT DOOR

{headline}

{headline}

How to carve your own decorative rock planter

How to carve your own decorative rock planter

How one mum created an enchanted garden for her daughter

How one mum created an enchanted garden for her daughter

4 tips for crate garden success!

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Crazy paving ideas to inspire a garden makeover

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{headline}

{headline}

How to make a privacy screen

How to make a privacy screen

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How to look after your bonsai

Retaining walls: how to choose the right material for the job

Retaining walls: how to choose the right material for the job

{headline}

{headline}

A beginner's guide to creating raised garden beds

A beginner's guide to creating raised garden beds

How to grow and care for waratahs

How to grow and care for waratahs

Make an adorable window planter box

Make an adorable window planter box

20 big ideas for small gardens

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How to build a pergola

How to build a pergola

How to care for a Bird of Paradise Plant

How to care for a Bird of Paradise Plant

Before & after: An incredible patio transformation

Before & after: An incredible patio transformation

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