The idea of gardening with kids can be daunting. Trust me, I get it. But if starting a garden has always been something on your mind, you must give it a shot. You will save on your grocery bill, surround your kids with healthy food, and eventually, they might even eat it. My kids have yet to munch on the broccoli and kale, but I’ll never give up! Overall, when you make planting a garden a family affair, you are setting a strong foundation for your children. Here’s how to get started:
1. Organic soil is king: If there’s any secret to having a successful garden, it is this. The first year of our garden, we didn’t purchase organic soil and our garden was a bust. But every year after that, it’s been a huge success. Give your nearest Home Depot a call and they’ll dump a bunch of lovely soil right in your driveway. While yes, it’s messy, it’s more than worth it.
2. Till: Rent or borrow a till and spend time tilling your garden to break up the nutrients in the soil.
3. Plan what you want to plant: Finally, onto the fun part. Depending on the dimensions of your garden, you can map out exactly what you want to grow. After that, head to your local greenhouse and buy some goods. My son and I go together every single year and make a date out of it. I hope when he thinks back to his childhood, he remembers this annual event with good ‘ole Mom.
4. Give each child a job: Depending on their age, your kids can help. When we planted our first garden, my daughter wasn’t even one and she even “helped.” We planted her little butt in the garden and gave her a pretend shovel and she dug away. Older kids can help you by actually digging and placing the seeds or plants in and then covering it up with dirt.
5. Make a fence: You’ll want to wrap all of your hard work with a fence so that the little critters don’t destroy your produce. We just use wire fencing around the perimeter and have never had a problem with animals getting to our vegetables.
6. Let the fun begin: From here, you can get your children involved as much as possible. My kids love taking turns {aka fighting over} watering the garden. Once your produce starts growing, they absolutely love getting in the garden and picking the tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini. My son is old enough now that he can get in there and snip the broccoli with garden scissors, too.
7. Get the kids in the kitchen: Next, you can get the kids with you in the kitchen. I make dozens of cans of homemade spaghetti sauce and the kids love helping me chop the tomatoes and getting messy. You can ask them what they’d like to make, too—anything to get them involved. Have fun with it.
Guys, maintaining a garden is not as hard as it looks. Promise. If I can do it, anyone can. The memories I have with my kids putting the garden in is truly wonderful. Each year, I love watching them water and pick the vegetables, too. The eating part we’re still working on, but it gets better each year. Maybe this will be the year they finally indulge in the broccoli and kale.
