Spring planting for kids

We welcomed in Spring with a day of edible seed planting for kids to take home, nurture and harvest at a recent workshop. Learning about where food comes from by growing it, eating it and playing with nature in an unstructured environment should be part of every childhood.

Choosing vegetables that grow quickly is ideal such has Radish’s that will germinate within a week, and can be harvested in just a few more weeks. They make a great crunchy topping on salads.

Here’s a few tips to get kids excited about growing food easily! Choosing vegetables outside the norm keeps kids engaged. Candystripe beetroot or purple carrots (best planted in a deep vegi box) offer squeals of delight when being harvested. It’s like buried treasure!
Spring is the perfect time to get kids excited about growing food. Not only because the weather is perfect for growing but it also provides a great opportunity to get outside and play.

Start small – plant a pea or snow pea, in a pot and place it on your windowsill so they can manage the care of their new project easily. Watering it daily provides with a job to do that will not only give them a sense of purpose but they are rewarded with the growth of something they are taking care of and they get to eat it!

From here you could plant a poly box – a mini patch with a few varieties for food, lettuce and herbs work well and you can eat them straight from the box. There are lots of great vegetable planting guides online but we love DIGGERS and their easy to read guide of what to sow now.