Your-Go-To-Guide-for-Gardening-With-Children

GUEST BLOGGER KIRSTEN LEASK

Today we have a guest blog post by one of our very dear friends, Kirsten Leask! Kirsten is wife to Gav and mom to the cutest little poppet, Rosie. Rosie is 17 months old and she is just a darling! Kirst is an accomplished seamstress and she loves nothing more than to get her hands dirty in the garden! She values health and happiness and she believes that you are what you eat! Kirst is an inspiration to many by being a great example to follow on healthy eating, gardening as well as parenting. It is clear to see what a nurturing, gentle and compassionate mommy Kirst is, when you look at little Rosie. Thank you Kirsten, for being all that you are to the people in your life.

A Children’s Garden

Few things are more rewarding than planting a garden. What was once naked soil can be turned into a cheerful flowerbed with little more than imagination, seed and a spade. Watching nature magically transform from a seed to a plant is truly a miracle. Planting a garden has endless benefits, an outdoor area specifically for children is not only easy to achieve, but also provides a wonderful outdoor classroom. Mother nature is an excellent teacher, from patience and nurturing to seasonal changes and biodiversity. Studies suggest that healthy soil contains bacterium which stimulate serotonin making you feel both happier and more relaxed. All the more reason to get outdoor and dirty. Children are surprisingly satisfied with the simplest things when allowed the space for their imaginations to fill the gaps.

Here are some affordable and easily achieved ways to encourage children to enjoy the outdoors:

  • Possibly the simplest garden entertainment is the soil itself. Add some water and a few disposable containers, and you have a complete mud kitchen.
  • With today’s compact life style, space can be a problem. A bean on a window sill is a wonderful way to spy on nature as it completes a whole cycle from germination back to bean.
  • With only a little space, sunflowers planted in Spring are hugely rewarding. They require nothing more than scattering the seed and waiting for nature to do the rest. Once they have formed flowers, which fatten with seed which are delicious to humans, birds and monkeys.
  • If plants require too much attention for your lifestyle, maybe a few branches tied together into a teepee is more for you.
  • Sections of tree stump make exciting climbing structures, or can be arranged as little seats, stairs or posts for decorating with nature’s own decor.
  • Few things are more rewarding than picking your own fruit or vegetables. Mostly, they are fast to grow and don’t require much more than a sunny spot and frequent watering. Some fast growing, low maintenance ideas include carrots, strawberries, tomatoes and beans.
  • Nature is rich with texture. Going on an adventure to collect treasures such as pinecones, pebbles and bark can be as fulfilling as enjoying their varied surfaces, sorting or arranging them into patterns.
  • The garden can be great source of inspiration. Leaf rubbings make beautiful wrapping paper, while hammered flowers make delightful, realistic prints.
  • The outdoors are filled with possibilities, a healthy dose of vitamin D and the potential for many happy memories. Get outside and get dirty!

By Kirsten Leask.