As the old saying goes, a little dirt never hurt.  How true is this in all things about life and especially with kids?  I think we can say they are at their happiest when playing and getting dirty.  The dirt and sweat on their faces and clothes just add to their cuteness. And, let’s face it, they don’t seem to mind, the dirtier, the better.

As parents and grandparents, we are responsible for many things in raising our children and grandchildren from small life lessons to major decisions.  Gardening is just one aspect that can be so important to these little minds as well as spending quality time with them.  Our gardeners are always making sure to engage their children and grandchildren, and we love it.  As the crops are yielding their bounty, these kiddos are having a blast.

Gardening is a great activity that offers many benefits to these little-growing minds.  Not only does it offer great physical activity with hoeing and watering along with digging, it offers many valuable life lessons such as problem-solving when trying to figure out where to plant, decision making with what to plant and when to plant, and also teamwork when working alongside their family.

Jackson is having a wonderful time helping his papaw dig potatoes.  This is something he will always remember as he gets older.

 

The Pinson Family triplets can’t wait to eat their crops.  Just look at the smiles on their faces.  Their mom has said they can hardly wait until they are washed.

The Dillon and Maynard Families always have their grandchildren involved.  Here we have one helping to make kraut and the other is proud of her eggs her chicken laid.

These kids are helping to gather their crops.

Oakland can hardly wait to eat his blackberries.  He has a twin sister who doesn’t get many of his berries since he gobbles them down quickly.  He likes to eat them from the vine while helping to pick them and often picks the unripe ones.  This is where we gotta practice patience with these kids and teach them about when it is ripe and when it isn’t.  He gets very excited when I ask him if he wants to go to the garden and pick blackberries.

With gardening with kids, they learn to eat what they grow and gain insight into where food comes from.  They learn quickly it just doesn’t appear on the grocery store shelf and how much work goes into it.  And maybe they will grow up wanting to be a farmer.

While gardening engages all senses as well as learning new skills to take with you throughout life, it allows these kids to play and develop just like a garden.

The general rule of thumb for gardening with kids is:

MOST IMPORTANTLY HAVE FUN!