Growing for Generations

 

 

As I sit knee deep in the dirt, trowel in one hand and a small vegetable start in my other, a small voice rings out from across my garden. “Mom! What are you planting?” my 6 year old daughter, Rachel asks full of excitement in her voice. I pause to look up, still full of determination and hope that I will get the entire garden planted to perfection before the end of the day. “Tomato plants,” I answer quickly, looking back down at the long row that awaits me, and the many plants longing for a place to call home in my garden. 

 

Anyone who has children knows that this is far from the end of our discussion. The next question is flung toward me, “Can I help?” I look up into those big brown eyes and a smile that melts my heart. How can I possibly say no? “Of course you can help,” I answer, although I think to myself - there goes any chance of getting the garden done today. Without pause Rachel comes running with her own garden gloves in hand, and a look that reminds me that there are a few unplanned precious moments that you can never place a value on. 

 

I put her to the task of digging the holes while I put the plants in place. The rows are not perfectly straight rows I originally longed for, but the plants will grow just the same. As we are finishing the first row, I hear the sound of footsteps running toward us. My sons Ryan (10) and Jack (8) don’t want to miss out on the fun. We work as a team to plant the garden, and soon I realize that not only was it more fun than when I do it alone, but there are also many great lessons to be learned in the garden…life lessons that extend far beyond the garden gate. 

 

These are lessons I’ve personally unearthed over the past 10 years of gardening with my children:

 

Lesson 1

Children love to be involved in whatever you are doing. Gardening is a great way to get the work done while also spending quality time with the kids. When you are choosing vegetables or fruits, let them help in the decision making process. If you have the space, they could even have their own garden area to plant, water and care for. By involving your kids in the planning and planting of the garden, they will take pride and ownership of it and be more likely to help care for it. What I have found is that my kids enjoy every aspect of gardening, from planting and harvesting to even the more mundane tasks of watering and weeding. They are a great help, even if everything is not done exactly the way I would do it and they take pride in the plants that they grow. 

 

Lesson 2

Most children don’t have a long attention span and they want instant gratification.  Vegetables that are easy to grow include radishes, carrots, pumpkins, tomatoes, beans and peas. All of these will sprout fast so that your child can observe the progress on almost a daily basis. Make sure that you choose some vegetables that your child likes to eat, such as carrots or sugar snap peas. You’ll be surprised what they eat when they have grown it themselves. And even if your child doesn’t want to eat them they will still have fun watching them grow and harvesting them.

 

Lesson 3

Gardening teaches children the value of patience, “Good things come to those who wait.” It also teaches children to respect nature and enjoy the benefits that come from hard work and perseverance.   There is great pride that comes from growing something successfully all by yourself, (of course, with a little help from mom or dad, but who’s keeping track).

 

Lesson 4

If slugs got your peas, or your carrots never sprouted, don’t give up after a few small failures. Teach your children the value of following through and never giving up. With determination and a positive attitude, they can accomplish anything.

 

Lesson 5

Who doesn’t love Venus Fly Traps? There are so many fun, different plants and seeds for your child to try.  I feel like a kid, just looking at the options and trying to narrow it down to a few favorites. There are Rainbow Blend Carrots, Easter Egg Radishes, and Purple Beans, just to name a few. There are many unique varieties to peak your child’s interest. Sunflowers are always a great plant to grow with kids, but there are also several bright and colorful annuals that are easy to care for and continue to perform throughout the summer months.

 

 

 

Lesson 6

There are endless subjects that can be taught in the garden. For example, you can teach about measurement when you are deciding how far apart to place your plants. Get out a yard stick and show your child how far 18” is apart. You can teach math (how many plants can fit in this row if it is 25’ long and each plant is 12” apart?), science (what are the parts of the plant), health (the birds and the bees and how plants are pollinated), reading (read the backs of the tags to learn more about individual plants and their planting conditions). I could go on and on…there are just so many great lessons to be learned in the garden.

 

Lesson 7

Most importantly, it should be fun. Everyone should walk away from the experience with a little more knowledge and a smile of satisfaction on their face.

 

 

We are now enjoying the benefits of the garden we planted that day. We are eating tomatoes fresh off the vine, picking our own carrots to cut up for salads and snacking on blueberries while we play in the backyard. Half of the work and half of the fun was getting to this point. When it comes down to it, the value of teaching your children the love and joy of gardening right now is immeasurable. The opportunity to teach life lessons and mold our children only presents itself in little windows of opportunity that we will either seize or let pass us by. Gardening with your kids may take a little longer. You may have to go back through and put some of the plants that landed upside down, right side up and yes, it will definitely teach you the value of patience, but the benefits are priceless! To have future gardeners…people who enjoy watching a flower grow, sustaining their family with homegrown fruits and vegetables, a love and respect for nature, a life-long hobby, a passion for plants ~ none of these values grow overnight, they are nurtured over the years to blossom into something that we are proud to call our own.