Children love to do anything you do, especially when they are little. The garden is the perfect place for them to learn about plants, planting, and the little beasties that help a garden grow. So if you want to get your children out into the garden, then here’s a few ideas for you to try this summer holiday…

The Garden as a Learning Environment

There’s so much for children to learn in the garden. Get them to tell you what is needed for plants to grow and encourage them to water their gardens regularly and watch them grow. Keep them involved, ask loads of questions: What do we need to do next? Where is the best spot for these? What do the instructions say? Will that seed grow in that bucket of water etc… This way they get to feel part of the job in hand. Explain that plants take time to grow and that they need sunlight and water.

Take photos of the plants at different stages, especially the quick growers such as sunflowers. When you think about it, it’s amazing that a huge sunflower can grow from such a small seed. When you get to the last few sheets of a kitchen roll, wet it and stand it inside a pint glass or tall jar, then drop a bean seed down the side. Keep the paper damp and you will see the bean sprout roots and then grow, a great way of showing what happens under the ground. Explain that the seeds are popped in the hole and then covered up to sleep, this helps younger children understand that the seeds are living and they need to be gentle with them.

Gardening is a great way to develop physical skills like their hand-eye coordination and basic motor skills. Children need to develop these skills, before they can hold and control a pen or pencil. Young children love plants which stimulate the senses, anything with soft leaves or bright flowers, grasses that rustle in the wind, aromatic herbs, scented flowers, fruit and vegetables etc. It can be particularly beneficial to grow sensory plants for children with special needs and sensory impairments, as it really does encourage them to explore and enjoy their garden.

Get children involved in composting – have a small waterproof box next to the sink to throw kitchen waste in. Make a little a chart of what you can and can’t compost, so the children know what to put in and what has to go in the bin. Talk about the insects you find and how they are good or bad for your garden – hedgehogs and toads eat slugs that will eat your plants; worms are good as they make holes in the soil for air and water to get to your plants roots etc.

Growing Vegetables with Kids

One of the easiest things to grow with children are vegetables. And what better way to introduce your children to the idea of healthy eating than growing their own? There are so many different varieties of vegetable to choose from too. How about going for something a little different? Red carrots instead of the usual orange ones, purple-sprouting broccoli, or maybe some black tomatoes? There are even little baby vegetables for little people! You don’t need a huge vegetable plot or an allotment as there are many vegetables that can be grown in containers, either inside or out. So living in an flat is no excuse to not growing your own vegetables too! Just for starters, how about growing strawberries in window boxes or growing potatoes in a planter made from an old tyre?

If your child is going through the ‘vegetables are yucky’ phase, then get them involved in growing their own – and then they might (I can’t promise), but they just might want to eat them afterwards. Start by letting them visit the garden centre and choose the seeds together. If this is your first attempt at growing your own veggies, then start off with some of the easy vegetables to grow, from lettuce and chard, to courgettes and potatoes, before moving on to some of the fussier ones!

Kids Garden Fun & Craft Projects

Fancy adding that personal touch to your garden? Making garden crafts encourages children to use their imagination and really gets them involved. On a rainy afternoon, you could spend your time painting flower pots, in the winter you can prepare the garden plant markers for your vegetables. We’ve pulled together a few Lazy Susan garden craft ideas from all the parents in the office to start off with, but to be honest just let your own creativity run wild and I guarantee you’ll keep the little monsters entertained for hours…

• Pressed Flowers
  There is so much you can do with pressed flowers… They can make birthday cards, bookmarks, pictures, the list is endless. You just need to press your flowers first using the old fashioned method – A heavy book and leave it in the bookcase for six weeks or so. Pansies and violas always seem to work best
• Painting Flower Pots
  Painting clay flower pots is the perfect activity for a rainy afternoon and then when things brighten up you can get the kids back in the garden to plant some seeds in their finished pots. Acrylic paint tends to work best as binds very well and won’t just flake off
• Garden Plant Markers
  The point of garden plant markers is to remind you which seeds you have planted where. True, you could just buy them, but they are simple to make, and great fun for kids to paint. Use lolly sticks as the stake and away you go
• Grow Cressmen
  One of the beauties of this project is that it is very fast to grow cress, so progress will be visible to the kids within a matter of days, and your cressman will have a healthy bunch of hair which you can then eat in egg sandwiches
• Making a Teepee, Wigwam or ‘Den’
  A teepee creates a wonderful hiding place for young kids during the summer months, just use your imagination
• Bamboo Wind Chimes
  Kids will love making a simple garden wind chime, hanging it up where they catch the passing breeze and listening to it chime away… All you really need is a length of bamboo cane or two, some string (not too thick and preferably synthetic as it will last longer outside) and a metal or wooden ring. Cut the bamboo and drill some holes in the end for them (different lengths tend to work best) and let the kids tie it all together
• Terrarium
  Start growing some plants that they can also take indoors with just an old pop bottle, soil, and seeds. All you need to do is cut the bottle close to the bottom (there may be a line near the end of where the label was, that’s a good place to cut), place some potting soil in the base, plant a few seeds in the dirt, lightly water and cover the base with the top part of the bottle with the cap on (you will have to fiddle with it a bit to fit back inside the base)
• Grass in pot
  Plant a silly container with grass. Take an old plastic flower pot, spray paint with a bright color, paint on some eyes. Fill with soil and grass. The children can cut the hair (grass) with scissors
• Save seeds
  Try plants like marigolds, lilies, four o’clocks, garlic, peppers, snap dragons, sweat honesty and columbine. These plants have easy to find seeds and are fun to harvest. Use a different small plastic bag for each type of plant you want to save the seeds. Create a label with a piece of masking tape and write the type of seeds and the date saved
• Garden hose
  On hot days, let them help you water the lawn and garden. Be sure to you wear clothing you can get wet in. Accidently on purpose squirt them and let them return the favor. Creating fun gardens for children means involving the kids in the design and evolution of the garden, working together to produce something unique
• Try some ‘Hardscaping’
  Create some stepping stones with cement and an old cake mold. Other good molds can be made from pizza boxes or plastic lids. Set the filled mold in the sun on a flat surface to harden for several days. Unmold, prime and paint with outdoor paints.
• Build a patio walk way
  Make a path with patio bricks (train tracks). Set some patio blocks close together and create circular path, and or a figure 8. Children will love stepping on these patio blocks. Wind a path around your garden, then you can be in the garden and the children can be close by
• Wheelbarrow rides
  And if all else fails, just push them around the garden in your wheelbarrow

Gardening is just the best activity you can do with your children … Whatever age they are. Children are enthralled by planting and caring for the flowers as they grow – even children that normally wouldn’t concentrate for more than a matter of minutes on other tasks will settle down and focus. So if your stuck for things to do with your children this summer, get them out in the garden!

Tags: Children, Encouraged, Garden Crafts, Gardening, How To, Ideas, Involved, Kid's