By Kristen Plank
University of
Georgia
|
It’s sometimes difficult to get children to eat their veggies.
But they may be more receptive to eating broccoli and beans if
they grow and harvest them.
Bodie Pennisi, a floriculture specialist with the University of
Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, says
children are naturally excited about nature. It’s a short step to
get them interested in gardening.
“There are two ways to introduce children to gardening and to get
them excited,” she said, “from the animal perspective and from
the food perspective.”
Pennisi suggests appealing to a child’s sense of curiosity toward
wildlife. Start by talking about butterflies, hummingbirds and
bees and how important they are to the life cycle of the garden.
Next, think about how you set up your garden. An interesting tip
Pennisi gives is to use unique containers. “You can use anything:
buckets, teapots, tires, football helmets, dump trucks, wagons or
even old shoes,” she said.
Old shoes can easily become planters. Just put the soil in,
sprinkle in the seeds and add water. Suddenly you have a unique
container kids will enjoy.
Children’s gardens can also follow several different themes. From
butterfly gardens to vegetable and herb gardens, the possibilities are endless.
However, don’t keep all the fun to yourself. Letting your child
decide which type of garden she wants to plant adds a whole new
element of excitement.
Children can grow all types of vegetables. Beans, broccoli,
carrots, eggplant, onion, peppers and tomatoes are all easy to
grow. Make choices based on your child’s personal tastes.
Because there are several different types children can work with,
Tomatoes are a great hit with kids, Pennisi said, because
different varieties produce an array of fruit in numerous colors,
shapes and sizes.
“Herbs, too, are easily grown from seed,” she said. “All they
have to do is sprinkle the seed, cover them with soil, water them
really well and in a few days seeds emerge. A few weeks later the
herb’s scent develops.”
If your children love flowers, there are plenty of unique and
cool flowering plants kids can grow. General options include
impatiens, pansies, sunflowers and snapdragons.
Bulb planting can also be a fun and educational way to teach
children how different types of plants are grown. Children are
amazed to see flowers on a plant they grew from tiny seeds or a
bulb they planted.
“An early spring container of bulbs could consist of daffodils,
hyacinths and tulips,” Pennisi said. “Summer bulbs include cala
lily, short gladiolus and caladium.”
Encourage your children to keep a daily or weekly gardening
journal. Describing how the plants are growing, what tools they
used that day or what kind of wildlife they saw while out in the
garden engages children in creative writing. By taking and
including photographs, the gardening journal can become a keepsake.
“Harvesting herbs is especially great as they can write, ‘I
helped Mom cook the pesto sauce with the fresh basil.’ This can
lead to an interest in cooking and helping in the kitchen as
well,” Pennisi said.
Plants to stay away from while gardening with children are
angel’s trumpet, castor bean, climbing lily, foxglove, morning
glory and flowering tobacco, she said. The seeds or leaves of
these plants are toxic and should not be planted near homes with
children.
Other safety reminders involve growing and planting.
“Be careful with sharp instruments, and make sure kids don’t hurt
themselves while clipping blooms or handling heavy containers or
bowls,” Pennisi said.
Pennisi discourages parents from using pesticides around
children. Instead, use organic fertilizers and compost which
aren’t harmful.
