How To Get Your Child Involved In Gardening

Garden-Share, an interactive social network for recreational and professional gardeners, said that 37.7 percent of gardeners began gardening before age 10. This is according to Garden-Share’s recent gardening trends survey of its 27,688 members. Garden-Share also provides top seven tips for gardening with kids.


“Gardening is a great way to spend quality time with your kids,” says John Mitchell, founder of Garden-Share. “These tips can be useful to parents who are looking for other ways on getting your family outside and making them aware of the benefits, enjoyment and overall satisfaction of gardening.”
Garden-Share offers the following seven tips to engage kids with gardening:

• Toddlers naturally want to be with their parents outside and join in on activities. Give them their own-sized tools and they will enjoy it even more. Kids and gardening are a natural combination. Gardens offer kids bright colors, unusual smells, different textures, and dirt to play with.

• Surround your garden with backyard toys or a playscape. Having a garden in your child’s play area gives them the opportunity to continuously interact with it, creating a natural interest for gardening.

• Container gardening is a good place to start with kids because it’s simple, controlled and can be enjoyed year-round no matter where you live. All you need is a container, a few stones, soil, a plant or seeds and some sunshine.

• Find out their favorite subjects in school and tie them into gardening. Gardening can teach kids about climate, weather, biology, soil, and bugs. It could also provide them with an appreciation of nature. Hopefully, too, it teaches them patience while waiting on the final outcome.

• Plant a rainbow in your garden. Ask kids to select flowers in the six different rainbow colors and plant them in curving rows. When they bloom, you will have a rainbow.

• Share children’s books and media that incorporate gardening. These include “The Apple-Pip Princess,” “Johnny Appleseed,” “Jack and the Beanstalk,” “Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots” and “The Curious Garden.” Garden-Share provides videos on garden instruction and photos of end results that can help get kids interested in gardening.

• Kids love playing in water and most parents can confirm that on laundry day. Get them engaged by letting them water plants with their favorite water gun/toy. Show them that water and gardening can be fun together.

“Summer is almost here and gardening is a great way to keep your kids’ minds active and absorbing new things while away from their classrooms,” says Mitchell. “Start planning and sharing your gardening ideas with them soon. Their responses can help point you in the right direction when purchasing items for your new garden.”