Gardens are a great way to improve the way your house looks from outside, or to grow your own food. You can even do a quick search for a local landscaping service near me to find the best person to help you create the perfect garden compliment for your house. Additionally, gardening can be a fantastic source of fun and familial bonding. Working together to cultivate life and make something beautiful grow, what could be more wonderful than that?
Unfortunately, many parents find that their children are less interested in joining in with the gardening fun. And more interested in watching digital media content indoors. It can be very disappointing for parents to work hard in order to try to include the kids, only to have them slink away after a few minutes. While it’s true that not all kids have a green thumb, there are a lot of things parents can do to try to help their kids enjoy gardening a little more. Here are five fantastic tips for how to make gardening fun for the whole family.
Let Everyone Help Design The Garden
One of the best ways to encourage your kids to get more involved is by letting them help design the garden. Some parents might have certain reservations about letting their young children make design decisions. However, oftentimes children can be surprising in just how creative they really are.
Have your children draw up a basic blueprint or outline of what they want the garden to look like, complete with plants or designs for the flower beds. You and your spouse should make a blueprint as well, so that you’re able to pick and choose which elements of your children’s designs you want to incorporate into the actual garden. With a say in what the garden looks like, your kids will be a lot more personally invested in the outcome!
Make It Kid-Friendly
Next, you should try to make a family garden as family-friendly as possible. Any plants that may cause uncomfortable rashes or would otherwise endanger young curious hands should be avoided. There’s no easier way to ensure your kids won’t be joining you if they cut themselves on a nasty row of rose thorns. While it might limit your options for what you can plant, the joy of bonding with your children should be more than worth the sacrifice.
Additionally, if you’re planning to include edible plants, try to include your children in what they want to eat. Fun edible plants include radishes and pumpkins since they grow quickly and tend to be on the larger side. Kid-favorites, such as strawberries, can also make the garden a lot more popular with the youngsters. Finally, it might be a good idea to plant some fragrant plants such as cinnamon or basil, in order to further appeal to the garden to young children with sensitive noses.
Include A Theme
Are your children still not convinced after being offered many opportunities to involve themselves? It might be time to bust out the big guns, so to speak. A themed garden can add a unique and wondrous element to your yard. Consider a child-friendly theme such as a fairy or princess garden. With a couple of well-chosen plants and decorations, the garden might be your child’s new favorite spot to play!
Harvest Produce Together
Once your fruits ripen and your flowers bloom, it’s time to harvest your hard-earned rewards! If your children have been involved during the entire process of planting and working on the garden, you’ll no doubt need no persuasion to have them help out with harvesting what they’ve grown. Even if they haven’t, chances are they will want to help with the harvest.
Enjoy The Fruits Of Your Collective Labor
Finally, once the garden has been harvested, it’s time to enjoy whatever you’ve grown together over the past few months. If you’ve planted vegetables and fruits such as pumpkins or strawberries, encourage your children to think up recipes. They can also plan ways to prepare the food. With any luck, your children will discover a love for gardening, and maybe even love cooking!
