How to plant a pizza garden

Is pizza a staple dinner entree at your house? Get your kids involved in making homemade pizza by planting a pizza garden!

A pizza garden consists of herbs and vegetables used to make pizza. It’s a great way to show kids where food comes from and how it can be used to make delicious meals.

What you’ll need

To plant your pizza garden, you’ll need seeds or seedlings of the ingredients you want to use in homemade pizza sauce and as toppings on your pizza. Here are some examples:

• Tomatoes (try paste varieties, which are great for making sauce)
• Peppers
• Onions
• Broccoli
• Spinach
• Garlic
• Oregano
• Parsley
• Basil
• Cilantro

Be creative with your toppings! There are many more vegetables that are used on pizza, like corn, cucumbers and even squash.

How to plant

You can plant your pizza garden in the shape of a round pizza, like University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension in Lancaster County explains. Or, you can plant your herbs and vegetables in containers or in a garden bed. Herbs grow well in containers or they can be planted in gardens along with vegetables.

You may want to consider companion planting for your pizza garden. Tomatoes typically do well when planted near onions, and they benefit from being planted by garlic. Basil and sweet peppers are good companions.

Plant seeds and seedlings according to instruction. Make sure you give your plants enough room to grow.

When it’s time to harvest, pick up your favorite cheese and meat toppings and you’re ready to create a homemade pizza!

Here are some Farm and Dairy pizza crust recipes to try:

• Pizza crust
• Gluten-free pizza crust
• The best pizza dough

Related:

• How to freeze whole tomatoes
• Here’s the scoop on tomato cultivars for Ohio gardens

Source: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension in Lancaster County