When you were a small child, the backyard was a place of magic and mystery. A whole day might be spent on your belly in the grass, watching beetles go about their mysterious business; climbing trees to peek into bird's nests; or methodically overturning stones to count the earthworms sheltering underneath.
Even in adulthood, there is something so special about a beautiful garden space, buzzing with life and greenery. You might catch yourself in a state of wide-eyed wonder as you watch a bumblebee hop from blossom to blossom in a carefully tended flowerbed, or experience a feeling of almost childlike awe as you witness the slow and steady climb of a bean plant up a trellis pole in its bid to reach the sun.
This sense of beauty and amazement that garden-spaces naturally evoke in all of us, regardless of age, can be a wonderful launchpad for family activities.
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And don't worry! You don't have to be a Master Gardener to teach your kids about the art of growing and caring for plants. Just start somewhere, and start small. Begin with making mud pies and naming lady bugs together while you dig out a small plot in a tiny yard corner. Let the kids get messy and play in the mud — digging, greeting earthworms, and enjoying the simple pleasure of contact with healthy soil. A little dirt on the knees is a small price to pay for all the fun and education to be had.
So, if you're ready to enjoy the many benefits of gardening alongside your children, try out some of these fun activities. You can get the whole family involved, share a picnic, and make a memorable day of it. Your children, and family, will blossom right alongside the plants you nurture together.
Create a Butterfly Garden
Spark a sense of wonder in your child as you create a beautiful butterfly habitat, while also providing these important pollinators with much-needed living space.
What You'll Need:
- A sunny spot
- Potting soil or Buffaloam
- Gardening pots or garden bed
- Flower starts (some great choices for butterflies are Lupine, Coneflower, Sunflower, Calendula, Borage, Clover, Coreopsis, Aster, Black-Eyed Susan, Dill, Snapdragon, Yarrow, Lemon Mint, Bee Balm, Catnip, Verbena, and Cornflower)
- Butterfly field guide (optional)
Step 1: Choose a variety of colorful flowering nectar plants and host plants to attract adult butterflies and provide a habitat for their caterpillars to grow. Choose the colors you want to display in the garden, and talk about the importance of protecting and providing space for pollinators.
Step 2: Work with your child to choose a sunny spot in the yard, add some compost, and show her how to scatter/plant the seeds.
Step 3: Water the garden and watch as your beautiful new flowers emerge and begin attracting a variety of butterflies!
Bonus Activity: Take a butterfly field guide out to the garden space look up and identify the species.
Extra Bonus Activity: Catch a caterpillar from the garden and put it in a quart or half-gallon sized mason jar with a cheesecloth lid held in place by rubber bands. Identify your caterpillar and provide it with fresh leaves daily from its favored host plant. (A good rule of thumb is that a caterpillar is most likely to eat the kind of plant you found it on!) Provide a few small twigs for your caterpillar companion to attach to, once he enters the chrysalis (cocoon) stage. When your caterpillar enters the pupae stage in the fall, and wraps itself in a cocoon, you no longer need to feed him. Simply provide a light misting of water once or twice per week, and wait. By spring, you should notice that the cocoon has become a darker color or has become clear. When this happens, make sure that you watch closely. A butterfly is about to make his appearance! When your new butterfly has left the safety of his cocoon and fully emerged, go outside with your child and release him together into the butterfly garden.
Imagine (and Build) a Fairy Garden
Create a whimsical “fairy habitat” in a container or gardening pot, sure to spark imaginative play and storytelling.
What You'll Need:
- A container, such as a pot, whiskey barrel planter, old toy wagon, corrugated wash-bin, or a small bowl for the table top. It is up to you! Choose a size which works best in your space.
- Potting soil or Buffaloam
- Plants: Some good choices are kitchen herbs, succulents, bonsai trees, groundcover plants and flowers.
- Accessories: Figurines, small birdhouses, ceramic toadstools, small pebbles, bits of moss, dollhouse furniture. Peruse a craft store, toy store, aquarium shop or home toy chest, letting imaginations run wild. The process of making and finding the accessories for the project will take on a life of its own and keep the little ones busy for awhile.
Step 1: Fill your container with potting soil and level the top, packing it down a little with your hands to make a firm, level surface.
Step 2: Decide on a layout and design for the garden. Let the kids draw it out if they want, and decide where they want to place the elements.
Step 3: Assemble! Place your fairy house, props, and plants, to make a lovely little home for the garden fairies.
Bonus Activity: Read a book of fairy tales together and model the fairy garden after a location in a favorite story.
Grow Your Own Pizza Garden
We bet most kids love pizza, and what better way to get them excited about gardening than to plant a pizza-themed garden? This 4-foot by 4-foot space will yield all the ingredients you need to make delicious homemade pizzas all summer.
What You'll Need:
- Potting soil or Buffaloam
- 2 tomato plants
- 2 bell pepper plants
- Onion sets
- Garlic
- 2 basil plants
- 2 parsley plants
- 2 oregano plants
Step 1: Choose a sunny spot and mark out a space about 4'x4'. For extra fun, design the garden plot in the shape of a pizza slice.
Step 2: Prepare the soil, tilling in some rich compost, or build a raised bed and fill it with quality potting soil and compost.
Step 3: Plant your pizza garden, making sure to use proper plant spacing as indicated on the plant tags.
Step 4: Tend the plants together, learning about care, watering, weeding, and feeding each variety of plant. Use gardening guides, online information, or the wisdom of a generous gardening friend.
Step 5: Harvest your bounty, and make a pizza with the recipe provided below.
Bonus Activity: Make pizza-themed plant labels with Popsicle sticks or cut wood pieces with paints or permanent markers.
Homemade Pizza Recipe
INGREDIENTS
One pre-made pizza crust or boxed mix, prepared per instructions (Pamela's Pizza Crust Mix or Gluten Free Mama's Pizza Crust Mix)
One jar pizza sauce or make your own from your fresh tomatoes!
1 large tomato, sliced thin
1 bell pepper, sliced thin
1 onion, sliced thin
1 clove garlic, minced
½ C fresh basil leaves, chopped
¼ C fresh parsley, chopped
1 TBS fresh oregano, chopped
1 ½ C shredded mozzarella
Parmesan cheese (optional)
DIRECTIONS
♦ Preheat oven to 450degrees Fahrenheit.
♦ Spread sauce on pre-made crust, sprinkle with chopped herbs and minced garlic.
♦ Top with shredded cheese.
♦ Add thinly sliced tomato, bell pepper, and onion.
♦ Bake on pan or pizza stone 15-18 minutes, or until bubbly in the center and brown around the edges.
♦ Sprinkle with parmesan and enjoy!
Preserve the Summer with Pressed Flowers
Pressing flowers and leaves is a wonderful way to capture the beauty of summertime, long after your garden has withered away.
What You'll Need:
- A basket
- Child-safe scissors
- A flower patch
- Tissue paper
- A stack of heavy books or a flower-press kit
- Picture frames
Step 1: Accompany your child on a nature walk to pick a basket full of wildflowers, or choose a variety of flowers from the garden at home.
Step 2: Arrange flowers and leaves on a sheet of tissue paper and cover with a second sheet.
Step 3: Press using flower-press kit or simply place tissue paper layers with flowers between two heavy books on a flat surface.
Step 4: After allowing flowers to press and dry for a couple of weeks, remove them and ensure that the drying process is complete.
Step 5: Arrange the flowers artfully in picture frames and enclose them, using the cardboard backings provided with the frames. You might need to use a dab of glue to get the flowers to stay in place.
Bonus Activity: Give pressed, framed flowers as a gift for the holidays, or a thank-you for a favorite teacher at school.
Extra Bonus Activity: Buy unfinished picture frames and paint them with fun colors to coordinate with your flower art.
Get Creative with Painted Gardening Pots
Who says those terracotta gardening pots have to be brown and boring? This activity is all about being creative with paints. When displayed outside or indoors, they add a touch of childlike wonder.
What You'll Need:
- Terracotta pots in a variety of sizes
- Acrylic craft paints in an assortment of colors
- Smock or covering to protect clothes
- Paint brushes
- Plastic plates
- Clear acrylic spray
Step 1: Soak the pots in a tub of warm water for one hour, then scrub with a stiff brush. Set aside to dry completely.
Step 2: Apply a base coat of paint, thinned slightly with water on a plastic plate.
Step 3: Using your paint brushes, add fun and imaginative designs to your pots. Set aside to allow paint to dry overnight.
Step 4: Once paint is completely dry, apply two coats of spray-on clear acrylic sealant to protect the pots from water and scratches.
Bonus Activity: Paint themed pots for kitchen herbs, use them to make whimsical fairy gardens, or add flowers and give as gifts.
Create a Living Fort or Pea Tee-Pee
Build a fun, living fort in the backyard for hours of playtime in the shade using bamboo or pine poles. It's perfect for hot summer days when imagination runs wild but shade is a must.
What You'll Need:
- 7-9 long bamboo or pine poles
- A roll of twine
- 15-20 pole beans or peas(Note: You can use seeds or starts.)
Step 1: Mark out a circle with a diameter of about 4 feet.
Step 2: Add compost around the edges of your marked circle.
Step 3: Push the ends of the poles in the ground at regular intervals around the circle, leaving a gap on one side for the doorway.
Step 4: Using the twine, tie all the poles together at the top, forming a tee-pee shape. Make sure they are very firmly placed and will withstand the weight of the vines AND the jostling of kids playing.
Step 5: Plant your bean seeds beside the bases of the poles. Plant two seeds beside each pole, one on each side, to ensure at least one healthy plant per pole.
Step 6: Water generously and wait for the seeds to germinate.
Step 7: When bean seedlings are a few inches high, gently tie them to the nearest pole. From that point, they will find their own way up and climb without assistance.
Step 8: Once the bean foliage has grown to the top of the tee-pee, the fort is ready for playtime.
Bonus Activity: For added color and visits by butterflies, intersperse bean plants with vine flowers, such as climbing Nasturtiums.
The options are endless when your outdoors in the garden with your kids nearby. And the memories will last a lifetime.
Editor's Note: Photos of children in the garden provided by Andrea Klingenberg.