Gardening for Children

It’s never too early to teach children the joys of gardening. In these modern times of TV, play stations, ready meals and processed foods it often seems our children are missing the simple pleasures of outdoor life.

Gardening can open up an undiscovered world for children. It teaches them the whole life-cycle, from new growth through to dead-heading and recycling.

Gardening Ideas for Children

Growing a sunflower is a perfect and easy introduction to gardening for children. They can plant the seed and watch it grow almost daily. It’s great fun measuring the growth against the child’s own height.

Bulbs are easy for little fingers to plant. Let children select bulbs at the garden centre, choosing their favourite colours. When the time comes get them to watch for the shoots – a perfect introduction to the miracle of nature.

What better way to get children to eat fruit and vegetables than to grow their own? Even the fussiest eaters can be encouraged to try their produce. Freshly shelled peas from the pod, digging a clump of potatoes, picking blackberries, popping succulent cherry tomatoes into your mouth …….. does this stir some of your own childhood memories?

Introduce your child to the joys of herbs. Let them grow herbs in containers. Allow them to touch and smell the leaves and show them how to harvest them for use in cooking. Don’t forget the old favourite – mustard cress seeds – a fascinating way to show children how seeds germinate.

Making compost is both useful and educational. Showing a child the compost-making process will help them discover the world of organic gardening. Teach them what to put on the compost heap, such as old plants and leaves, fruit and vegetable waste and eggshells, and what not to put on the heap, such as left over food.

Let Them Join in

Involve children in your own gardening tasks. Yes, it will be time consuming but you may produce a budding young gardener. If they want to help in the garden then let them. Make tasks simple and fun. Ask them to dig a hole, pull out some weeds (make sure they know which the weeds are!), or pop bulbs in the holes. Let them get dirty and have fun!

Children love being in charge. Give them their own special gardening patch. Allocate them responsibility for watering or sweeping. Make them feel part of the whole gardening experience.

The Rewards

Show your child how successful their gardening has been. Take photos of their flowers and vegetables – particularly any funny shaped vegetables they grow, which they’ll find hilarious. You could use the photos on home-made greeting cards for friends and family.

If there’s a flower show where you live enter their efforts in the competitions. Teach them if they don’t win it doesn’t matter – we just try again next year.