IN THE GARDEN
Off the sofa
Phoebe (7) and Cole (5) du Feu take first steps in gardening
and into the garden
Our gardening correspondent, Gill Maccabe, writes about how to get your children interested in gardening Despite the Duchess of Cambridge making it look so easy at the last Chelsea Flower Show with her award winning exhibit Back to Nature, gardening with children can be tricky. However, if you accept that it is going to be messy, time consuming, a bit frenetic and disorganised, you will be glad you’ve made the effort.
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Think of your garden, however small, as another room which doesn’t actually need dusting and polishing. You don’t have to worry about furniture being damaged or scratched, nothing can be broken and the children keep themselves safely entertained for hours on end, all whilst getting exercise and vitamin D.
There are numerous reasons why we should be gardening with our children. It engages all five senses: How does that grass feel? What does a flower smell like? What does a raspberry taste like straight from the bush? What are the birds saying? And why is that big tree that was green last week now covered in pink flowers? And of course making the garden interesting will get them off the sofa and outside, where they should be in summer. First of all, keep it simple and keep it safe. Get a few child-sized tools and do your research into what is safe to touch and eat.
