As a mother and a dietitian, I know how challenging it can be to get your children to eat enough fruits and vegetables. We are so removed from our food supply, teaching children about how food is grown will help them appreciate what is on the table. When they involve in gardening, they learn that food comes from the ground, not from supermarket. More and more research (here, here) shows that when children help grow fruits and vegetables, they are more likely to eat more produce and try different kinds, too.
YOU CHILDREN CAN BE PART OF THE PLANTING AND GROWING PROCESS
Depending on their age, children take the gardening differently. For example, preschoolers tend to be fascinated with exploring dirt, digging holes, planting seeds and working the garden hose, while older children may be more interested in how a single seed turns into an edible plant. Ask children which fruits and vegetables they would like to grow. Teach children responsibility by assigning each child a watering, harvesting or weeding task. Allowing children to be involved in every step of the process will get them excited to taste the fruits and vegetables of their labor.
ENCOURAGE TASTE TESTING
Gardening exposes your children to a variety of fruits and vegetables so encourage taste testing straight from the ground (after a quick rinse to remove dirt) and at the dinner table. Show kids how a tomato can taste delicious from the vine or in dishes such as pasta sauce.
Children are fascinated by both very small and very large objects — including vegetables. Whether in the ground or pot, cherry tomato plants grow to the perfect height for little hands to pick right off the vine.
INDOOR HERB GARDEN
Herbs are perhaps the easiest plants to grow and can be a good place to start to interest children in gardening. Most herbs can grow in small pots on indoor windowsills. Herbs usually grow easily, so you’ll probably have more than enough. Choose a few herbs to start, such as parsley, basil, rosemary, green onion. Don’t worry if you have too much herbs in the end.
An excess of basil can be made into pesto, frozen in ice cube trays and stored in the freezer to use later. And, all herbs can be dried.
START FROM WHAT YOU EAT
Begin small by creating a garden with a dinner salad in mind. Plant salad greens, carrots, tomatoes and cucumbers — all are kid-friendly and easy to grow. Children like to see the result of their effort, so consider planting crops that grow quickly such as green beans or carrots; or those that produce heavily such as grape tomatoes.
GARDENING IN SMALL SPACES
No yard? No space? No problem! Try using large pots/containers/planters, you can placed on the balcony or porch to grow foods such as tomatoes, salad greens, peppers and even cucumbers.
MY GARDENING EXPERIENCE IN CANADA
Gardening helps our children engage their curiosity, learn to be resourceful and gain self-confidence. It also is a great way to get the entire family outside for fresh air and physical activity.
If you’re like me and you’re new to gardening, the idea of starting a garden might be a bit overwhelming. After a lot of research and some trial-by-error and tweaking, last Summer my 3-year-old son, husband and I planted our first backyard container garden.
Here is what you need to start your indoor or outdoor garden:
- Pots, planters (if space is limited)
- Some soil (Look for Organic soil under any brand, most nurseries have them)
- Seeds (You can buy them from nurseries)
- Plenty of water
- Sunlight
- Space (patio, balcony, backyard)
- Patience
After a couple of months, the hard work will pay off with your own fresh and delicious fruits and vegetables for the whole family to enjoy.
No matter what you plant and whether your carrots look like carrots or something different, have fun. Odds are kids and parents will enjoy the time they spend together and learn a little something along the way. And remember: children are going to get dirty; that’s part of the fun!
Harvesting roots and tubers can be a treasure hunt. What’s more fun for a child than yanking a carrot out of the ground, washing it and taking a bite?
Children will be fascinated by the growing process, whether it’s indoors or out. Small children may find it exciting to watch how low-maintenance, easy-to-grow and brightly colored berries grow and expand during the season.
Unfortunately, the winter is quite long in Canada, the growing season can be very short. So, we are planning to grow more indoor herbs this year.
WHAT ABOUT MALAYSIA? MALAYSIANS CAN ENJOY A YEAR-ROUND HARVEST
Start an herb garden
- Herb gardens are great for kids and it doesn’t matter the season.
- Growing herbs doesn’t take much work – some soil, lots of sunlight, and water. The process, from seed to skillet, is similar to growing a garden. Let children relish in trying new flavor profiles they had a hand in growing!
- TRY: Oregano, thyme, mint, rosemary, basil, lemongrass, curry leaf, green onion, ginger, onoin.
Start a vegetable garden
- Let children choose some of the seeds to plant.
- Guide them in exploring and researching other decisions that go into a garden, like what fertilizer to use, pest management (go organic!), co-plantings, etc.
- When gardening with groups of small children, don’t forget to make it fun and creative. Break up the “hard work” like weeding, seedling, watering, etc.
- Don’t forget to hang out in the garden and enjoy the space!
- TRY: lettuce, long bean, kale, sweet peppers, chili, kangkung, choy sum, cucumbers, tomatoes, spinach, cabbage, okra.
BOTTOM LINE
It’s a great way to teach children where their food comes from and to help them gain the satisfaction of growing something themselves.
Children who grow food and prepare it are more likely to try it.
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