My toddler daughter and I recently completed a two-day “Kids & Gardens” workshop at our local botanical garden. She had a wonderful time getting her hands (and the rest of her body) dirty digging holes, planting seeds, and harvesting crops along with about a dozen other children her age. Kids, dirt and gardening tools; it may sound like a recipe for disaster, but surprisingly, the activities were very well structured and age appropriate.
My daughter left with a burgeoning bean plant and I gained some great pointers on how to get and keep your child interested in the world of living plants:
Start Simple. Common houseplants, including ivy, ferns, cacti, pothos, and aloe don’t need much attention to remain alive and well. They make excellent “foolproof” plants because they have a good success rate. For children (like my daughter) who love to “help out” by watering plants, our gardening expert recommended ferns and azaleas, which thrive if given lots of water.
A Child’s Touch. Let your children decorate or paint inexpensive flowerpots specifically for their plants to go in. I can’t draw to save my life, so my daughter and I went through magazines and picked out pictures of her “favorite things,” such as puppies, kittens, fish, and ice-cream cones. Once we glued those on the pot she she added dozens of stickers that we had picked up from the dollar store (that’s also where we found affordable flowerpots). The entire project cost less than $5.
Create a Grocery Store Garden. All you need is a child’s plastic grocery cart. Inside the cart place garlic (started from a bulb), a sweet potato plant (started from a sweet potato) or beet, carrot, leek and turnip tops, all started from store-bought vegetables.
Is It Here Yet? If your toddler is anything like mine, she has the patience of a gnat and doesn’t quite grasp the concept of a “watched-seed-doesn’t-grow.” If that’s the case, consider tiny, fast-growing “bonsai-like” plants, such as cress or alfalfa sprouts. These can be grown on a moist cotton ball–you don’t even need soil.
Bean Plants. Lucky for us we left the workshop with a wonderful parting gift: a relatively fast growing bean plant. Bean plants–grown from navy beans or mixed soup beans from the store–will germinate in about three days. For a shot of whimsy you can stake the growing plants with simple items such as curvy drinking straws. Don’t have straws? A ruler will work just as well.
A Healthy Alternative. Plant wheat grass–available at most health-food stores. Your kids will love growing a miniature yard right inside their bedroom. If you don’t live near a health food store you could use regular lawn seed in plastic cups or eggshells decorated with faces.
Vitamin C Trees. Grow citrus plants, such as oranges and lemons from the fruit’s seeds. It’s easy and inexpensive.
Remember the idea is to get children to realize that food doesn’t grow in the refrigerator or in a grocery store. Have fun letting them plant and harvest their favorite foods. For example, if your children love watermelon, consider having a seed-spitting contest in the yard and let melons spring up wherever the seeds fall. Keep it simple and happy gardening!
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