Kids in the Garden

Luke playing in the yard and gardens in the rain

This week my mother, Elizabeth, gifted me the most beautiful book.  It's called The Book of Gardening Projects for Kids.  I've really only just started working on my gardens last year.  I'm working on creating beds and hedges, privacy and pathways.  But now, I'm looking to start adding all those intriguing nooks and crannies that kids love to explore.  The Book of Gardening Projects for Kids gives you oodles and oodles of amazing and fun ideas to turn your yard space into hours of educational and imaginative play for your children of all ages (itty bitty toddlers through college age kids).  The book showcases several different families, their yards, and specifically how they've transformed their yards into useful and beautiful garden spaces for the whole family.

Here are some of their ideas:

--Birdhouses, feeder and baths

--Plant a pizza or pirate garden

--Miniature landscapes: a fairy garden or toy dinosaur garden

--Garden signage throughout the yard

--Living structures: A bean tee pee, sunflower house or plant tunnel

--Play areas: sandbox, playhouse, hopscotch pathway

--Plants to graze on: sugar snap peas or cherry tomatoes

--A sundial

--Places to hide

--Areas to gather: an outdoor eating area sized for children

--Places to relax: A swing or hammock

--Tools for measuring the weather: a rain gauge or wind sock

I've only scratched the surface of making my yard kid-friendly.  Luke and I made a concrete stepping stone together with his hand print on it. Placing that in the garden bed gives him a little ownership and pride out in the yard. He likes to keep placing his hand in the print to see if he's grown. 

Whenever Joel and I have a planting project, we always include the kids as much as possible.  It makes them feel like the yard and plants are theirs too.  Last summer we planted zinnia seeds in Luke's own little garden area, and they grew larger than him! This year we planted sunflowers, but the chipmunks ate them as soon as they started to sprout, so we must start over with new flowers, and soon!

Luke checking out the hole for the new giant boxwoods we planted a few weeks ago

Sophia checking out the grass while we plant bushes

What are some things you have done to your yard and gardens to make them into spaces that children love to explore?