Gardening with Your Kids: Make it a Fun, Educational Experience

Kids love to get their hands dirty. What better way to encourage them to do so than to plant a family vegetable garden? This is a beneficial activity that can provide for your family and a wonderful way to pry them away from the distractions of television shows and video games. If you have a reluctant teen, explain that they can be a role model for their younger sibling. If you have a very reluctant teen, explain that they are planting their future meals. No help, no food. I know, it didn't work with my son either. But my girls loved it, and he ended up joining us anyway.

Planning

1) Gather everyone around the dining table with drinks and some snacks and have a discussion about everyone's favorite vegetables. Smaller children can draw pictures of what they like. Older kids can choose what vegetables they are willing to eat. My girls love vegetables, but my son is pure carnivore. I was surprised to find he was willing to at least taste the vegetables he grew, rather than give me "the look".

2) Make a list of the seeds or plants you will need. Check your zone to see what plants are better suited to your climate, and when is the best time to seed. This is something the family can research together. Choose a spot for your garden and prepare the land. Kids love to dig and will gladly help turn the soil. If this is a project geared more towards the children, try container gardening. We had both a small garden and container gardens, and they work equally well. Add some herbs, they grow fast and smell wonderful.

3) If seeding plants, give your child several plastic cups where they can supervise their own. Their should be the "quick plants". Add cups of flowers as well to inspire your child, and to demonstrate how to care for a plant before the seedling appears. Or again, try for an herb garden to supplement.

Purchasing

4) Go to your local garden centers for seeds or plants. Make sure everyone in the family has their own special plant or area to tend to. Talk with an employee about the plants, which leaves look healthier, gardening tips, and so on.

5) If you are planting a container garden, let each child choose their own container. The more colorful, the better! If the children have their own gardening tools, apron, and gloves, it can be more fun, though I can almost guarantee those gloves will come off at some point.

6) If you have an impatient child, select a few things that will sprout and grow relatively quickly. Radishes come up in just a few days.

Planting

7) Seeds should go in about ¼ of an inch deep into the soil. You child can poke a small hole into the soil, probably just above their fingernail or to the first knuckle. For plants, make sure the root bed is carefully manipulated to loosen the roots and allow air in while keeping the plant intact. Let the kids carefully squish their hands into the root bed. Now, start digging! Let the child explore the ground, spotting insects, rubbing the soil between their fingers. Point out the warmth of the sun on their backs, and explain how that warmth and light helps plants to grow.

8) Using a watering can, help the children gently soak the surrounding ground without flooding the plants. If you are using a hose, you can angle it to create a rainbow in the sunlight. This always excites children. Explain how water feeds the plants, and how they have to take care not to water too much, or the plants will bend and become "pruney" like their fingers in the bath tubs. Kids also love to weed, so be sure to take advantage of the extra help! Explain how the vegetable bed should be nice and clean so the plants have room to grow. Feel free to hope this little speech will translate to the housework, but it hasn't worked for me so far. In fact, I seem to have a lot more dirt tracked into the house, but it's a good trade off.

Picking

9) Check the garden daily and watch their enthusiasm as the vegetables start to grow! In actuality, this is probably the hardest time, teaching them patience. They'll constantly ask "are they ready yet?" and want to pick the vegetables as soon as they see one. Explain that they need time to mature, just like the child does. Once the time is ripe, give them a basket and show them which ones are ready. If they pick premature vegetables in their eagerness, gently correct them and look up a good recipe for fried green tomatoes.

10) Allowing them to help prepare the vegetables for dinner is a special treat! Discuss menus that uses the vegetables you've picked from the garden, and make the preparation a family affair.

Gardening together is an excellent way to incorporate math, nature, science, and health into a school curriculum, whether you are a homeschooler or a teacher looking for a fun activity during the spring months. Keep a journal and photo of the progress the garden, and the child, has made. Everyone will benefit from the "fruits" of their labor, literally! For more information and wonderful fried green tomato recipes (just in case) try the links below.

www.gardeninglaunchpad.com
www.foodnetwork.com