We love to encourage children to explore nature, they are the new generation of gardeners! As well as the health benefits of getting outdoors and being active, spending time in the garden is a great way for children to become more creative. Growing and harvesting their own vegetables from the garden can be very rewarding and might even encourage them to eat more!
Gardening is also a great way to stimulate your child’s senses (touch, sight, sound, taste, and smell). An array of flowers, bushes, and plants can create a sensory garden with strong smells, colours, and interesting things to touch.
Why not try:
- Touch – Lamb’s ears (Stachys byzantina) or Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa)
- Sight – Sunflowers or Marigolds
- Sound – Grasses or Nandina Domestica
- Taste – Herbs or Strawberries
- Smell – Lavender or Sweet pea
Choose a packet of seeds and have a go at growing your own! Growing seeds in an egg carton is a great introduction to gardening and a fun and easy way for children to learn about how a plant grows. What’s more, when the seedlings are big enough, the next step is simple – the biodegradable cups can be transferred directly into the ground or a larger pot.
Here is our free downloadable PDF to making your own egg box planter.
Pea shoots are a great introduction to growing your own for children. They can be grown all year round indoors and are really easy. Using a clear plastic bottle (great for recycling and reusing) to grow them, you can see the roots establish too. The fun thing about growing pea shoots is that you get results very quickly. What’s more, they are tasty to eat and full of vitamin C and protein.
Here is our free downloadable PDF to growing your own pea shoots.
You can also try growing:
- Courgettes (easy to grow from seed)
- Beans
- Tomatoes
- Salad leaves
- Strawberries
See our ‘How to’? Grow Your Own guide.
Rock gardens can make brilliant features and are also easy to build with your children.
Using striking alpines and succulents you can create a low maintenance area due to their resilient nature, making them the ideal plants for amateur gardeners. Most alpines are easy to grow in the garden with minimal maintenance. If you don’t have much space, you can always make an alpine garden in a trough or container with adequate drainage.
For more information and a step-by-step guide, you can see our ‘How to’.
Terrariums are a wonderful addition to a children’s bedroom, they make a great design statement and are easy to maintain. Your children can add weird and wonderful cactus’ and succulents to create their perfect indoor garden.
For more information and a step-by-step guide, you can see our ‘How to’.
We always like to hear about children’s growing stories and we would love to see what you’ve been up to – tag us on social media.
