The Incredible Benefits of Gardening for Children

 

The Incredible Benefits of Gardening for Children

Children love spending time playing outside, exploring nature. They thrive during outdoor activities and we all know that fresh air and playing outside are incredibly beneficial for our children’s health. But did you know that gardening, as well as being a great educational tool, also has incredible benefits for our children’s wellness and development?

Gardening Develops the Senses

Gardening falls under the spectrum of activities which increase sensory development in children. Gardening engages all of the senses and encourages children to learn and explore; while gardening, children can admire the colours, sizes and shapes of the plants, smell the wonderful scents of the flowers, touch and feel the textures of leaves, dirt, seeds and flowers, hear sounds relating to nature and taste the vegetables once they are grown. Involving all the senses helps children understand new concepts and pushes them to be curious and open minded.

Gardening Develops Responsibility, Memory and Focus

Caring for plants is an important aspect of gardening. Children learn to take responsibility for their plants and to properly care for them to allow them to grow. They also learn about cause and effect, as they quickly associate the fact that plants die without water.

Gardening can be therapeutic also in case of ADHD, as children learn to focus more; studies have shown that outdoors activities – such as gardening – improve memory and attention much more than indoors activities. In this case, it’s particularly important to encourage your child and help him reach his gardening goals, so it might be a good idea to pick plants which are easy to grow and care for, such as the yucca: this plant is low maintenance and is a popular choice because of its ability to adapt and thrive in many types of environments.

Gardening Encourages Healthy Eating

Having your children grow their own tomatoes, blueberries and even broccoli will give them a sense of pride as they realize what they have “created”, all by themselves. This will emphasize the importance of eating healthy and will also help them learn about where healthy, fresh food comes from. Your children will finally be eating fruits and vegetables without complaining.

Gardening Paves the Way for a Green Future

Teaching your children about gardening and about the environment helps them realize how important it is to take care of the Earth. It’s the perfect opportunity for us as parents to introduce concepts like pollution, recycling and saving energy. Children who garden and take care of the environment are more likely to turn into adults who garden and form positive and lasting relationships with the environment, an incredibly important skill for the future of our children and future generations.