Gardening Tasks Even Toddlers Can Help With
Gardening is one great way to get your kids outside. However, if you don’t allow them to stay busy, toddlers can create more work for you. Here are some tasks toddlers and young children can help with.
Placing seeds: Put a few seeds at a time in a medicine cup so they don’t go nuts.
Pulling deadheads: I remember popping off my mom’s deadhead flowers as a kid; and it was pretty fun. You can let little ones pull off dead flower heads, dingy leaves, or even have them pull up dead plant. Give them a pair of kid friendly gloves.
Worm hunting: Worms help your garden and many kids are ready to help (not my son - squeamish) but most. Let them bring the worms to you.
Rock collecting: When I’m outside and Cedar doesn’t want to be, I tell him to collect rocks. Now in his case, he’s always liked collecting rocks. He has books about it, and a pretty big collection by now. If your child is not interested in rocks have them collect sticks, ladybug (carefully), or any other outside object.
Watering: Give kids a little can that pours slowly, so you don’t end up with poor drowned plants.
Busy work: There’s tons of busy (non-essential) tasks a child can do in a garden with a tiny hand shovel. Any kid will shovel dirt back and fourth between a pot and the ground, kids like to pretend to plant things (sticks, a single flower) in a pot, or allow them to be a little more useful and loosen dirt in an area for you.
What do you let your little one help with in the garden?
[Image via stock.xchng]
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POSTED IN: Eco Youth, Grow Green Kids, Organic Gardening
5 opinions for Gardening Tasks Even Toddlers Can Help With
Linette
May 17, 2008 at 4:38 pm
That’s my son’s favorite, worm hunting (and bug hunting).
marye
May 17, 2008 at 6:26 pm
Well, you can get a great picture of what I let my “Little Ones” do in the garden by clicking on the link..LOL!
DramaMama
May 17, 2008 at 8:54 pm
My almost 3yo son makes me sand pie. He also collects rocks, but I make him put them back b/c he gets them from the swail keeping water out of our yard! At times he finds pine cones…he really loves to come in the garden and dig, but now that we have actually planted something that’s not allowed! I’m so mean. Oh well =) I appreciate his willingness!
Jennifer
May 18, 2008 at 12:44 am
Linette - Cedar is freaked about bugs (all bugs) except maybe ladybugs. I know he’d never touch a worm.
Marye - that picture is so cool. I love that shot from the back. Although, not so much a toddler, and that’s actual work!
DramaMama - Sand pies! Great idea, or dirt castles and such. That’s a good way to let them be in the garden, so long as they don’t make a dirt pie with your veggies and flowers. (I was guilty of that as a 3 year old)
kisha
May 18, 2008 at 3:31 am
We have no garden here just rocks but my daughter loves when we start planting new things in pots. I don’t water with a hose but re-use milk and juice bottles. She loves that she gets to pour out the water and help water the plants.
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