Gardening with children - tips and easy garden projects

Gardening with children is educationally valuable and fun. Through gardening, children playfully learn about the cycles of nature and different plants. It requires patience and perseverance. Furthermore, it gives little ones the opportunity to take on responsibility.

Carrots don't grow on bushes and strawberries don't grow on trees. Gardening allows children to see where the fruit and vegetables from the supermarket originally come from. And incidentally, homegrown fruit and vegetables taste much better.

To give children their first gardening experience, you don't even need a garden. A balcony or a windowsill is perfectly sufficient for initial projects. In this article, we have a few tips and simple gardening projects for your children's first gardening adventures.

Have you already seen our article with sustainable play ideas for a walk in the woods , tips on what to look for when buying toys , our vegan cake recipes , or tips for simple micro-adventures with children ?

These plants are well suited for first gardening experiences with children.

Children need quick results, as they are usually quite impatient, and with some vegetables, it can take a whole summer until harvest. Therefore, it's worthwhile to grow some plants that bear fruit and can be harvested after a short time.

Snack cucumbers grow quickly and climb up sunny fences.
Radishes are easy to grow and can be sown from March to August.
Carrots taste delicious, grow quickly and are easy to care for.
Cocktail tomatoes also thrive wonderfully on the windowsill.
Strawberries and raspberries are a must in every garden.
Herbs such as parsley, dill, chives, lemon balm, basil and peppermint do not take up much space and can be planted in pots on the windowsill.

A private garden for your child

As soon as your child wants to do everything themselves, it's time for their own project. Children love taking on responsibility and having something of their own to look after. It doesn't have to be a whole garden bed. One or two square meters of bed, a small planter box, or a large flower pot is perfectly sufficient. Let your children decide what to plant.

Create space for bees, butterflies and birds in the garden

In a garden or even on a balcony, there should also be places for insects and birds. Find another free corner in the garden or place an extra flowerpot there and scatter bee-friendly wildflower seeds or flower seeds that butterflies particularly love.

To make time in the garden even more exciting with children, you can put out food for birds and squirrels. Children love watching animals, and as soon as the first squirrel nibbles on the tasty nuts, the little ones will be beside themselves with joy and excitement.

Making plant labels with children

Making plant labels creates anticipation for the gardening season and is the perfect activity to do with children on rainy days.

Labels that stick out of the pot are very practical, as they allow you to easily identify what's growing where. Wooden popsicle sticks can be painted or decorated with stickers for this purpose.

Small, flat stones are also very suitable; they can be decorated with pretty patterns on one side and have an inscription on the other. There are no limits to your imagination here.

Planting a fruit tree

Animals can retreat to the tree's canopy, and birds can build nests in the branches. The blossoms attract insects in summer. Anyone who plants a fruit tree can harvest delicious fruit in the summer. A tree belongs in every garden, and if you don't have one yet, now's the perfect opportunity.

No garden? There are also small trees that can easily be planted in a large flower pot.

Planting sunflowers

Sunflowers are beautiful, grow quickly and tall, and provide food for many animals. With enough sun and water, they will thrive in any large container.

Planting potatoes in a bucket

Potatoes taste delicious and can even be grown on a balcony. All you need is a bucket, soil, and about five potato tubers with eyes. Place the seed potatoes, eyes facing up, in an open egg carton and wait until they sprout. Then, place the potatoes, eyes facing up, into the half-empty bucket. Now simply cover the potatoes with soil, water them, and wait until the first plants emerge. As green leaves appear, gradually add more soil. This way, more potatoes will sprout in no time. When the leaves turn yellow, you can harvest the potatoes.

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