Gardening with your kids has about a million benefits, but these are the top reasons I get out in the yard with my children. It’s not hard to garden with your kids. Try it and report back if you see any of these side perks, too! This post contains affiliate links.
The other day, Peeper looked out the window and asked, “What’s on fire?” In a panic, I looked outside and saw not smoke—but clouds upon clouds of pollen wafting off a tree in our backyard. Spring is officially here, people.
(Now where’s my Claritin?)
As much as allergies annoy me, I am so ready for spring, partly because I can’t wait to garden with my kids! We’ve been talking a lot about what we want to plant, and we picked up some seeds from the garden store the other day. We’re raising bees this year, too, which will greatly benefit our garden—and influence what we plant, since I want to ensure we grow a pollinator-friendly garden.
But my aims to garden with my kids goes beyond providing food for our honeybees. Getting outside with my preschooler and toddler, connecting them to the natural world and teaching them responsibility by caring for plants are just a few reasons why gardening with my kids is at the top of my priorities.
Curious? Hungry? Excited for spring? Here are my top reasons why you should dig in with your little gardeners.
12 reasons to garden with your kids
Reform picky eaters
Kiwi, who pretty much survives on peanut butter and macaroni and cheese (though not together, yuck!), actually eats cherry tomatoes straight off the plant. If that isn’t a #parentingwin, I don’t know what is.
Teach kids about where food comes from
The girls help me and Eric grocery shop, and they love to pick out apples or peppers. Actually growing food shows them that food originally comes from the ground, not the grocery store.
FYI, my girls love using their own tools. They each have a set of these metal-and-wood kids’ sized gardening tools as well as kid-sized gardening gloves.
Get dirty
Dirt don’t hurt—in fact, research shows that a bacteria found in soil can protect against asthma, reduce inflammation, lower stress and boost immunity. We could use any help protecting against preschool germs!
Inspire curiosity
When I garden with kids, they investigate the natural world with unbridled curiosity. We call out to each other every time we uncover a worm or beetle, and they have none of the squeamish avoidance of creepy-crawlies other kids do.
Encourage gratitude
By gardening with my kids, they learn that food doesn’t magically appear at the grocery store; it requires hard work to raise fruits and vegetables. Sometimes at dinner we take a moment and say what we’re grateful for, from the soil that grows the food to the farmers who harvest it and the drivers who deliver it.
Become self-reliant
Our tiny garden isn’t going to feed our family of four, but it’s a wonderful feeling to step outside and pick ingredients for salad or pasta primavera. Since reading Black Belt Bunny, Peeper has wanted to be just like the Bunny and make her own salad with ingredients from our yard—though we’ll see if she eats it!
Teach gardening skills
My family didn’t have a garden growing up—the ravenous deer in our neighborhood ate everything we planted except for ferns—so I’ve had to grow my green thumb as an adult. I’m still fairly clueless in the garden, but my kids and I are learning together. I love that my kids see me approaching a new skill with openness and the willingness to make mistakes.
Connect to the natural world
A study from Cornell University found that the more time a child under the age of 11 spent outside, the more likely he or she was to care about the environment as an adult. Gardening with kids is an excellent way to teach a love and respect for nature.
Model a learning mindset
The other day we walked into our gardening store asking which organic fertilizer we should use to solve a problem with our raspberries (namely, that they grow like crazy but don’t produce a single berry). The store employees didn’t know, so I said we’d go home to research and come back later. I love that my girls see me trying to problem-solve, try new things and research questions because I want them to learn these skills for themselves—for the garden and beyond.
Appreciate beauty
There’s much to be said for stopping to smell the roses. Immersing yourself in beauty—whether it’s at a museum or in your yard—is a way for you and your kids to truly enjoy life.
See an interconnected ecosystem firsthand
The other day, Peeper asked me what caterpillars’ job was. It gave us a chance to talk about how caterpillars eat plants, birds eat caterpillars, bird poop fertilizes dirt, and healthy soil grows plants. An interconnected ecosystem can be a tough concept—but one made much less abstract for a preschooler through hands-on experience.
Offer opportunities to learn responsibility
Kids love feeling grown-up, and helping in the garden is one way they can exercise low-stakes responsibility. The girls feel so important when they pull weeds, look for ripe tomatoes and water the garden.
Do you garden with your kids? What benefits of gardening have you seen?
All great suggestions for getting kids to spend time in the garden. And I’ve heard from reliable sources that mac & cheese + peanut butter is surprisingly tasty! It’s kind of stoner food, but you just never know.
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That’s awesome! What a great way to instill skills and appreciation in your children. I’ve seen my niece and nephew in the garden picking fresh berries, and it’s neat how much they get out of it!
These are all great reasons. I also didn’t grow up with a garden, so me and my boys are learning together. I even sent them to a farm camp 2 summers ago that focused on gardening and growing food. At the end of the week the kids harvested vegetables and made a meal that they shared with all the parents. They were so proud of their creations 🙂
To my surprise my kids weren’t picky eaters early along, but now, at 7 years old, they are getting really ornery and picky with food. I think gardening will help nip some of that in the bud and help them see food grow and be proud of growing food and (hopefully) want to eat what they grew.
Great list of why! Unfortunately the gardening part never was successful with me – but I always got sensitive getting itchy and rashes and red eyes so it never stuck, though I appreciate those who do go out there and the labor involved!
I think it’s wonderful you’re gardening with your kids. It teaches them so much about responsibility, food choices, and health. Plus it’s a wonderful way to get outside together!
I 100% agree, Jenni! Gardening really does help them expand their palate.
Great suggestion. Nowadays kids are become busy with their gadget while missing the real fun.
I think so, too. Although my kids do get some screen time, we’re all happiest when we’re playing outside!
Hello Catherine, you have shared very useful blog with us. With the help of it, we can learn lots of things about gardening. Thank you for sharing this blog with us.
So glad you enjoyed it, Jane! Happy you found the post helpful. Thank you for reading.
Gardening with kids is such a wonderful thing. They get to learn a lot while they see a garden or a tree to grow. It inherits great culture values in them and helps them become a better person in their lives.
I totally agree. The patience they learn helps so much!
Gardening gives kids a chance to learn an important life skill, that is overlooked in standard school curriculums. Gardening is also a great way to teach environmental awareness by exploring the workings of nature.
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Donna! I completely agree.
This is lovely! Quality time with your little ones are really amazing especially times where you can teach them and allow the to grow personally
Agreed: I love spending time with my kids doing something together.
Hello catherinemryan,
Gardening with your kids is great idea. Its help kids for refreshing mind, responsibility, work mind, time conscious etc. When kids work with you, they friendly with their parents and share their problem easily. Lot of thanks for this great idea.
Absolutely! Gardening is a great way to spend time together.
Gardening gives a lot of benefit to us, children can learn how to keep flowers or tress survive in the future. They will have a good lesson learn when they were kids. Also it will help kids to exercise without having any self-awareness. Thanks for your sharing interested article.
You’re welcome – I agree, gardening is great for little ones!
Responding to comments really gives the sense of community to readers, it really shows them that you care about your readers and that your not some robot behind a keyboard. I think it is my favorite tip on this list. Good work!
Thank you for sharing this inspiring post of yours. I also have a mini garden at home and I can’t wait to let my kids do some gardening works. I know they will learn a lot from it.
You’re so welcome, Dan! Gardening with kids is such a fun outdoor activity. I hope you have a wonderful time with your kiddos in the garden!