Gardening requires a lot of care, patience, and dedication to the cause. Indeed, not many people have an affinity for it, which explains why gardening continues to happen in only 25% of American households. The lack of interest is either because people regard it as too much work or were not exposed to gardening from a younger age. Fortunately, you have the opportunity to introduce the concept to your kids while they’re still young. If you are at a loss about how to tread that path, below are some tips to consider.

• Give them their garden plot or pot

Giving your children a sense of ownership makes them feel responsible for the task at hand. Naturally, kids have imaginative minds and always love to create their special go-to place in their heads. Therefore, what better way than to give them a physical one? If you have enough land space around the house, designate a spot for their maiden gardening activities. However, you may want to consider some flower pots positioned strategically around the house in the absence of space. That can be an even better option because of their manageable sizes.

There are options in situations where you and your family live in condos or other apartment-style buildings. You can try using plant troughs with a few basic bonsai trees or seedlings that your child can attend to. You do have a responsibility to help them prepare the soil before any planting can be done.

Do keep in mind that kids get bored quickly, therefore whether it is a garden plot or pot, put some creative thoughts into the design. With pots, you can get your child to decorate them as they want. However, if it is a plot, a decorative or colorful child-friendly fence with hand-painted objects works just fine as long as the décor matches your young one’s personality.

• Let the kids have their garden supplies

Thankfully, there is a myriad of garden tools specially designed with children in mind. On Amazon, you will find several lightweight garden supplies and tools these young ones can handle without having to worry much about safety. More exciting is the fact that your kids get to make their selections. On a psychological level, though, owning their very own garden supplies contributes to the feeling of ownership. You would have generated an interest in gardening that will stay with them into adulthood.

If your child has a tiny plot for their garden, do not forget to protect their sensitive knees and hands. Knee pads, sizable garden gloves, aprons with pockets, etc., will act as protective barriers when they crouch on bare soil to tend to the growing garden. No matter how minor, a garden injury can discourage some kids from going further with their gardening lessons.

• Introduce them to child-friendly garden sites on the internet

Instead of just worrying that your young ones spend too much time on the phones and tablets you gifted them, why not put them to beneficial use? That means instead of long hours of playing games or watching their favorite children’s shows, introduce them to gardening sites on the internet. For example, kidsgardening.org is an excellent place to start. For more variety, you will find other interesting content on your young ones on YouTube Kids. Do not forget to put your internet settings on ‘Safe Search’ to filter out adult sites and foul language.

• Get them to observe nature

If your family loves camping, that’s an excellent way to get kids to observe nature. Moreover, the best way to teach a child about gardening is to get them out into nature to do some much-needed observation. Be ready for lots of questions, though. Getting them to learn about the weather, birds, bees, bugs, butterflies, and how they all play crucial roles in the gardening and flowering process can pique your child’s curiosity. For example, expand the lessons into how bees and birds pick pollen and inadvertently help cross-pollination processes. Nature is a practical classroom for your kids, and they will love that you introduced it to them.

The trick to getting it right with kids is to make each garden activity fun, memorable, and full of rich experiences. As the exercises continue, be deliberate about teaching at least something new during each session. What you can do is to jot down everything you intend to teach your kids about gardening and release them at a time. Lastly, do not forget to reward your kids with their gardening achievements.