We have a guest post today all about gardening with kids!
Gardening may be something that most people would think is only ideal for adults, but that is just oh so wrong. Yes, you probably like gardening for various reasons. So, why would that mean that your kids don’t or wouldn’t like it?
Gardening is a great thing to do for everybody out there, kids and adults alike. There are many valuable takeaways which gardening brings to the table. It’s a lot more than just shoving some random plants into the dirt, that’s for sure. So, let’s get right to it and talk about the 4 main reasons why gardening is great for kids.
1. It Gets Them Outdoors
In our opinion, one of the best parts of gardening for kids is the fact that it gets them to go outdoors. Kids spend way too much time indoors nowadays. With all of these horrible TV shows and violent video games, it can be quite the challenge to get your kids outside. However, it is really not a good thing for kids to be inside all of the time.
Sure, games and TV can be fun, but they usually aren’t too productive or educational, plus it has your kids sitting on their behinds all day. The world is currently facing an extreme obesity epidemic, especially in North America and Western Europe. To be blunt, kids are getting lazier, fatter, and much unhealthier than kids in the past have ever been.
It is more essential now than ever to get kids to be active and get them outdoors. There are also other benefits to being outdoors, some as simple as getting some fresh air and much needed sunlight. It seems like people, especially our younger generations, have forgotten the positive aspects of something like gardening and being outdoors. Heck, it seems that some kids are downright afraid of sunlight, kind of like vampires.
It is up to you as the parents to get your kids to go outside, get some sunlight and fresh air, and work off those chocolate chip pancakes they ate for breakfast. Simply put, there is nothing like being outside to get some good exercise and to learn about nature. Gardening may not be like running or lifting weights, but digging holes, weeding, and planting things will certainly take some energy out of them. Stop having your kids rot away and get heavy in front of a brainless TV screen when they could be outside!
Now, on a side note, there is such thing as aquascaping, which is the practice of underwater gardening, or like an aquarium and garden combo. Aquascaping is usually done indoors, but it is pretty neat because what’s better than fish and plants together? Some people get a Betta fish, a Betta tank (more on them here), and then put lots of plants in it. It won’t necessarily get your kids outside, but aquascaping does indeed have some beneficial aspects to it none the less.
2. They Will Learn Valuable Lessons
Something else that is great about gardening for kids is that it will help teach them some valuable life lessons, ones that are important to learn at an early age. One of these lessons is the lesson of responsibility and being able to care for something. Kids need to learn at a young age that taking care of something, even a plant or two, is something that requires time, effort, patience, and commitment.
From gardening, kids will learn that they have to take proper care of something. Pruning and watering plants will teach them how to take care of something. On the other hand, not watering the plants and taking good care of them will teach them the consequences of what happens when you neglect something, even if they are just plants. It’s a good way to start teaching your kids some commitment and responsibility without having to worry about dead pets. Being able to care for something is a skill that everybody needs to have, and the earlier it is learned the better.
It is also important to learn how to garden and grow crops. Heck, we might be reaching a little far here, but growing plants and crops can be a lifesaver. Now, it is not like we are banking on a disaster or the collapse of the world agricultural system, but what if something does happen? If your kids know how to garden, grow plants, and even grow crops, it might just save their lives on day. If and when grocery stores every have trouble meeting demand, your kids can just eat their own homegrown tomatoes!
3. Spending Quality Time With You
Yet another thing that is great about gardening for kids, as well as for parents, is the fact that it allows for some good old quality time to be spent together. In today’s fast paced world of drive through fast food, reality TV shows, video games, and an increasing demand for high paying jobs, it can be very difficult to find time to spend with your kids. Plus, there is also the fact that parents and kids don’t always have the same interests. Sometimes parents just get sick and tired of trying to pry their kids away from the TV. Sure, everybody wants to spend quality time with their kids, but sometimes the kids just don’t want to.
So, gardening, maybe a fun version of it like aquascaping, can be a great way to get your kids to spend time with you, and more importantly, enjoy spending the time with you. Your kids may not think that gardening is very fun at first, but once you show them the joys of it, they might just change their minds. There is no time like the present to hang out with your kids, get to know them, and form a close bond with them.
Working together with your kids to build a garden, either with flowers, herbs, or vegetables, will let you do something together with your little tikes, plus you get to see a reward from it too. You can always try the practice of underwater gardening, also known as aquascaping, which is even more fun for kids thanks the involvement of fish. The point we are making is that gardening can indeed help you bond with your kids and there is nothing more valuable than that!
4. It Gets The Creative Juices Flowing + Relaxation
Many people see gardening as some sort of necessary evil, usually for nothing more than making the home look nice and keeping property values up, but there is so much more to it than that. Gardening is a valuable activity in so many ways. For one, it can be a very relaxing thing for your kids. With school, the prospect of working for a very long time, and every other stress causer in between, kids need a way to relax.
Being in the sun, getting fresh air, and doing nothing but concentrating on the plants is a great way to mellow out, forget troubles, and just enjoy the day. Sure, you kids might think that video games are relaxing, but seriously, running away from and shooting at murderous zombies can’t possibly be very relaxing!
There is also the fact that many people would consider gardening to be an art form. People love to pick where certain flowers go, what flower or plant combinations to get, and making patterns with them. Gardening is a way for your kids to get their creative juices flowing and create an artistic expression of their own. Sure, it’s important to learn how to garden for the sake of being able to grow food and such, but it makes for a great mental and emotional release too.
If you do want some other ideas for getting outside with kids then you might find this post helpful.
Conclusion
As you can see, gardening is great not only for you, but for your kids as well. Gardening is fun, relaxing, it gets your kids outdoors, it lets you spend quality time with them, and it teaches some valuable life lessons too. It’s time to get your kids outside and teach them the values of gardening, plus the mass amounts of fun it can provide too! We hope that we have inspired you to take your kids on a family fun gardening adventure!
This post was sponsored by Aquaspace Addiction.
