By Juanita Schwanke, Intern
As the warm weather approaches and Spring is now officially here, you may be thinking about the gardening season! Maybe there’s already been an afternoon spent in the greenhouse starting seeds or in the garden getting beds ready or maybe you’re still digging out from a long winter. Whatever the case, what a great opportunity for the children in your life to experience this season with you. Whether it’s your children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews, neighbours, friends, or students, there are a lot of things that can be done together in and around the garden.
Here at the A Rocha Brooksdale Centre in Surrey, BC we’ve had various groups of children out in the Children’s Garden. They’ve been hoeing, weeding, starting seeds, and planting a few early seeds right in the ground, all to the tune of some catchy gardening songs! (Inch by Inch, Row by Row…..) Some of the children and youth had never used a hoe before or worked in a garden, and they were proud of the new skills they learned. There was a big “Hurray” and a group picture around the teepee they constructed where Pole Beans will grow up around.
Another group of children spent some time investigating the compost pile. They each got a scoop of compost on a tray, some poking and digging utensils. There was excitement when they discovered a worm or identified egg shells, garlic cloves, or pieces of celery that were still decomposing.
What a wonderful gift it is to give children the time and the space to explore, to get their hands dirty, to connect with what God has created and ultimately with Him.
Whether you have a large or small space there’s a lot that you can do to involve children in the process; remember to keep it a fun and positive experience! Expect more mess, that everything will take a bit longer, and may not go exactly as planned! Be flexible.
Here are some ideas:
Start seeds indoors – they can help daily with watering
Let them help you dig in the garden – even little ones love a patch of dirt to hoe.
Make mud pies together!
Plant a container garden – use creative containers, just add drainage holes
- old shoes or boots
- old kettle
- baskets
- painted tin cans
- yogurt containers
- old sink
- old bathtub
- tea cups
- chairs with flowers growing through or on seat
- colander
- milk jug
Paint pots
Plant a pizza garden with ingredients for a pizza – basil, tomatoes, spinach, onion etc.
Make a scarecrow – let them stuff it and paint a funny face
Reserve a space for them to plant what they choose
Build a pole bean teepee – let them help dig holes for the stakes
Plant a sunflower house – sunflowers in a circle to make a hideout
Grow a flower rainbow bed – help them choose the flowers
Search for worms together
Sift the compost pile
Weeding competitions
Paint rock garden markers
A great place for ideas is on Pinterest. Search for “Children’s Gardening Ideas” and also for “Container Gardens”
A wonderful book for gardening with children that’s been a great resource for us:
“Gardening Projects for Kids: 101 ways to get kids outside, dirty, and having fun.” by Whitney Cohen and John Fisher of Life Lab
