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Garden Ideas to Entice the KidsBy Ed Rooney
Choose Odd or Unique PlantsIn the garden you may have better success at retaining your child's interest in what is going on in the garden by selecting plants that reflect most children's tendency toward fascination with oddities. Tiny tomatoes or huge sunflowers, striped beets, giant pumpkins, rainbow swiss chard, grape hyacinth, balloon flowers, bleeding hearts and many others offer a myriad of shapes, sizes and colors to tickle the fancy of young green-thumbs. Plants that offer interesting textures are good for keeping kids' interest. Strawflower offers a dazzling array of petals while columbine graces the garden with its swept-back appearance. Wooly thyme, lamb's ears, and some varieties of sage offer great contrasts in texture to other plants in the garden such as prickly coneflower.
Fragrance is an Important Part of Any GardenIt is understood that the sense most closely associated with memory is that of scent. Create memories that will last a lifetime and will bring kids back for more next year by indulging their sense of smell with plantings of fragrant flowers and herbs. Lilacs, roses and peonies are great choices. When you show them how to rub the leaves of marjoram, rosemary and lavender in their fingers, they will find great joy in the process of releasing delightful scents. Attract Birds and ButterfliesAttracting hummingbirds or butterflies to your garden is a fantastic way of creating interest for kids. Dill, milkweed and thistles are beloved by butterflies. Bleeding hearts, petunias, morning glories and impatiens will all help to attract hummingbirds. Moonflowers, evening primrose, and four o'clocks are all wonderful additions to extend the time your kids visit the garden into the evening. Watching these performers open in the evening is a true delight.
Ed Rooney is the creator of the Garden-Helper.com website which offers opportunities to learn to garden. For gardening podcasts, planting calendars, garden shopping and garden planning tools visit Garden-Helper.com. Article Source: Garden Ideas to Entice the Kids In search of my mother's garden, I found my own. -Alice Walker
© 2010 by Everyday Education, LLC
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The days are getting longer and the itch to get into the garden and start things is stronger than ever. But what about the kids? Many of us have tried and failed over the years to create gardens with our children that hold their interest and keep them involved. With a little planning it is possible to keep little ones' imagination engaged while providing a beautiful garden for you as well.| (c) 2010 by Everyday Education, LLC :: designed by se7endesign :: |