Parent Magazine St. Johns April 2019 | Page 11

8. Gardening is a good work out. Gardening is good physical labor involving muscles that don’t always get a workout. Even the most seasoned gym-goer may admit to being sore the day after working in a garden. Gardening involves stretching, bending, digging, lifting, pulling and raking. Gross and fine motor skills are used, and even the youngest gardener, with simple tasks, gets physical activity. 9. Gardening helps children become environmental stewards. When children start reaping the food and flowers that come from a garden, they realize a garden’s impact on them and their impact on the garden. Once they have this tangible experience, it is much easier to teach them to care for the environment. 10. Gardening can lead to a longer life. Studies show that adults who garden in their later years live longer. Instead of living a sedentary life, gardeners get off the couch and are active in nature. Teaching children good habits when they are young will make them more likely to follow them through life. Sow the seeds of a garden with your child today and see them reap the benefits for a lifetime. Janeen Lewis is a freelance journalist and mother of two. She loves to teach gardening to children. CREATIVE THEME GARDENS TO GROW WITH KIDS These interesting themes are a great way inspire children to garden. Pizza Garden Grow all the herbs to add to a pizza. For an extra touch, make the garden round like a pizza. Fairy Garden This garden includes both plants and miniature structures and is a great place for your child’s imagination to grow. Pollinator Garden Build a garden that attracts butterflies, bees, birds, bats and other insects and animals that will help pollinate plants. Try planting milkweed, zinnias and snapdragons. Herb Garden Herb gardens are a great way to foray into the world of gardening. They can be grown inside or outside and include plants such as basil, oregano, sage, thyme, parsley and many more. Art Garden Students can grow flowers and plants that can be used to make art, or they can grow a garden of plants for kids to sketch. NO YARD? NO PROBLEM! When your backyard is a concrete patio or an apartment balcony it’s hard to imagine growing a bountiful garden. But it can be done in containers. Choose some eco-friendly containers with drainage holes in the bottom, fill them with a potting mix, and then choose seeds or seedlings to plant. Another option is to grow an herb garden inside on a sunny window ledge. A great resource for starting a container garden is “The Vegetable Gardener’s Container Bible: How to Grow a Bounty of Food in Pots, Tubs, and Other Containers” by Edward C. Smith. This book teaches even beginning gardeners how to grow organic food in small spaces. The book covers container and tool selection, caring for plants and controlling pests without chemicals. Maze Garden Create a maze with hedges, grasses or corn. In the middle of the maze, put something interesting like a sculpture, fountain, or another special garden bed. Peter Rabbit Garden Grow the vegetables found in Mr. McGregor’s garden. The great thing about this garden is that you can grow some of the vegetables – carrots, lettuce, radishes and cabbage – in cool weather, so you could continue to garden into fall. Salsa Garden Grow tomatoes, peppers, and onions to make a delicious salsa. Wildflower Garden Visit a nature preserve to discover the native wildflower plants in your area. Then build a garden with those flowers. Three Sister’s Garden Teach children about plants that grow well together, like corn, beans, and squash by cultivating the three in one mound. With a little research and tender care, you can grow flowers and vegetables that flourish. S T. J O H N S parent M A G A Z I N E | 11