While most students were still on summer break, a few home-schooled children visited Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site for lessons on heirloom gardens.

"I wanted to get kids out and harvest and talk a little about biodiversity," said Elizabeth Laney, a park interpreter.

The Redcliffe heirloom garden features varieties of plants that would have been grown on the site during the 1850s, when Gov. James Henry Hammond lived there. Hammond kept detailed records on his crops.

The first session for home schoolers was in June, and the follow-up visit was on Aug. 9.

In the first session, they talked about the crops and made their own journals about the plants.

In the second session, children were able to pick some of the last fruits and vegetables in the fields and take a closer look at them.

"Do you know how to tell if watermelon is ripe?" Ms. Laney asked the students. "It's only ripe if the vine that attaches to it starts dying."

The students picked corn, okra, Jenny Lind muskmelons and watermelons. Afterward, Ms. Laney discussed different ways to save the seeds so they could be planted next season.

Veronica Doyle thought the two sessions were helpful for her 11-year-old son, Aaron.

"I thought it would be something fun and educational," she said.

She wanted him to learn how different foods were grown.

It wasn't just the children who learned something at the event. Jim Weigand has lived in Aiken for many years.

"I like this place, but I never knew it was here," said Mr. Weigand, who learned about the program through his home school association.

His daughter Savanna said she thought the event was "really fun."

Ms. Laney was practicing drying out seeds for a seed swap that will take place at the site from 1 to 3 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 7.

"It's free; just bring your seeds," she said.