May 1, 2021

Top 6 Things For Kids To Grow!

If ever there was a time to get the kids involved in the garden.. the time is NOW!

A huge pull towards farming for us was being in a position to teach our kids a) to absolutely love, enjoy and celebrate nature and b) to nourish our bodies with our OWN homegrown foods. What an amazing opportunity and honour. But the question arises… what plants can kids grow? As we know.. not all things are easy to grow.. and not all things would be enjoyable for kids to either plant or eat! Hence why I have created this TRIED & TRUE list of our Top 6 Things for Kids to Grow! I hope it inspires you to give this a go with your own kids!

E D A M A M E

The seeds are nice and large for those little fingers to handle and plant! They don't take up much garden space at all.. and they are very easy to get growing. One thing to know.. the bunnies love munching on the little edamame seedlings! So you may want to protect with a little cage of chicken wire while still small.

My boys harvest the cute little pods into mason jars.

Z U C C H I N I

What kid wouldn't be enthusiastic about a plant you can make a CAKE with? Our whole purpose of planting a Zucchini plant in the boys garden, was to make cake with it! And that we did!! Zucchini is super mild in taste and simply makes a recipe more moist. This is a definite must in the boys little garden. HOWEVER do note that just one zucchini plant can become quite large.. and pumps out quite a few zucchinis! I suggest planting a few seeds all close together (again nice big seeds for little fingers) and then thinning down to one plant so you are not literally drowning in zucchini!

G R E E N S

Grow what your family enjoys! Whether that be arugula, spinach, lettuce or kale... Greens are super easy and fast growing! They are also considered a "cut and come again" plant, which means the more you harvest.. the more they will grow! You can literally eat from your little patch of greens every day! It is so much fun heading out to the garden with little baskets and harvesting fresh salad for supper.

C A R R O T S

These seeds are teeny tiny, but you can buy a ton of them and have their little fingers sprinkle the seeds into rows. It is best to plant a lot of seeds, as I find the germination a little sporadic! Spend a little wee extra $$.. and plant a bunch, because in my opinion.. no kids garden is complete without carrots!

I would have to say that harvesting carrots is my boys' favourite. They love yanking the veg out of the ground, running over to the hose to clean them and snacking immediately! It has become a part of our days in the garden. If we feel hungry.. we yank a carrot and chomp away.

T O M A T O

Specifically Cherry Tomatoes! Because garden fresh cherry tomatoes are super easy to pick off the vine, and they taste like CANDY! They are truly delicious.

In our experience, Tomatoes are not the easiest veggie to grow and do require a little more tender love and care. However incredibly worth it! We actually purchase already started seedlings from the nursery. They require staking as they grow a little larger. We use twine to fasten our tomato plants to metal posts. But once these start pumping out little delicious tomatoes.. the kids absolutely love harvesting & eating them.

Z I N N I A S

Let's not forget about flowers! Beautiful zinnia's will make the garden look precious and quaint, and offer your kids the opportunity to harvest their own fresh blooms for the dinner table! Filling little mason jars with flowers they grew themselves, filled my guys with so much joy and pride!

I recommend Zinnias as they are easy to grow and they are a "cut and come" again flower.. Giving your kiddos the chance to cut MANY flowers from their little garden bed!

I recommend either the Queeny or Oklahoma series, as the plant won't grow too large and shade other areas of the garden. I would avoid the "Giant" series as they can grow up to 5 feet tall.