It’s important to teach your children about nature and encourage their interest in growing plants, so why not let them have a little plot of earth to call their very own? They will be delighted to have a piece of ground to call their own. Choose a sunny spot and give them a hand to dig it up the first time, especially if it is in the lawn. Or you might prefer to section off a piece on the edge of your own garden. Make it small enough that the child does not feel overwhelmed in caring for it. One square meter would be a good size to start with.

Your child will be able to care for the garden more easily if he can access it from all sides. Remember their arms are not as long as your own. If you’ve included it in your own garden, a stepping-stone on each side will encourage little feet to keep away from your own plants that might be damaged. A set of small hand tools and a small watering can will encourage your child to get into their garden and grow something. Small gloves may also be a good idea - and make sure they wear old clothes, so you won’t be worried about them spoiling new ones.

Plants for children should be hardy, quick growers and have bright flowers or something to eat on them. It is also a good idea to use the kind of seed that can be planted straight into the garden. These are: Sweet Alyssum, calendula, clarkia, coreopsis, godetia gypsophilia, marigolds, nasturtium, poppies and sunflowers. Pansies, violas and petunias are also good choices. If your child wants to grow vegetables, beans and peas, cherry tomatoes, carrots and radish are good choices. Cucumbers and sweet corn are too.

If your child is reasonably patient, encourage them to buy the mixed seed packet especially for a child’s garden. There will be quite enough seed in that for one small garden. Another idea is to buy the plants in punnets or flats as some people call them. This will give a quicker result, though half the fun of gardening is to see the seeds sprout up and then watch the
flowers develop.

Never nag your child to do weeding or tidying up in their piece of garden; it will put them off gardening. Instead, encourage them to grow anything that takes their fancy and to decorate their garden with all manner of things like stones, shells or even toys. The main thing is that they perceive gardening as something to be enjoyed rather than a chore. A special trip to the nursery or supermarket so they can choose their own plants will inspire them to become the gardeners of tomorrow.

Beverley Boorer is a gardener and freelance writer. Her children’s stories and articles on a wide variety of topics continue to be published both online and off. See her gardening website http://www.top-garden-tips.com for more tips on gardening.