You don’t have to have a green thumb to have a beautiful garden. Not only is growing a garden an enjoyable experience, but with these gardening ideas for kids, you can also spend quality time with your children while you create something in your garden!

Supplies Needed

1. potting soil
2. flower pots or boxes
3. seeds, saplings or starters (starters and saplings are baby plants or trees that have already started to grow, you can buy them at nurseries)
4. gardening gloves
5. small shovel
6. watering can

The gardening gloves and shovel aren’t really a necessity, especially if you have kids that love to get dirty, but a watering can is highly recommended. Kids love water and the amount spilled from a watering can is a lot less than the amount spilled from a hose being left on.

Places To Plant Your Garden

Outdoors:

• Find a spot that receives both sun and shade, but not too much direct light
• The area should be close to the home, so children can tend their garden with minimal supervision
• Make sure the area has a small fence, or just string around it, so animals and kids are less likely to go running through it
• If you don’t have a yard, ask around to find out if there is a place that offers a community garden

Indoors:

• Flower pots and boxes are perfect for indoor garden since they are portable
• Windowsills and entryways allow the plants to receive light, just make sure it isn’t too drafty at night
• Some garden stores sell portable green houses that look like closets on wheels, which are great for larger apartments
• Make sure the pots are not too big or heavy for a child to be able to pick up and move
• Keep a towel under the pots to prevent water spillage

Best Kid Friendly Plants

Kids like fast results, period. Watching an ivy plant creep across the lawn isn’t exactly the most exciting plant in the world. Food bearing plants such as tomatoes, carrots, squash, watermelon and berry bushes not only grow fast, but they are edible too! Mixed wildflower seeds also sprout fast, allow kids to enjoy their blooms during summer vacation. If you don’t have all summer to wait, you can also buy adult plants, flowers and fruit trees from almost any nursery, replant them and enjoy them immediately.

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