Ah, spring.
After an entire winter spent cleaning up tracked-in wet messes, we can now begin to look forward to that glorious season when we can actually enjoy getting something dirty for a change. Specifically, our hands.
If you’re a gardener, you know the joy that comes with digging, planting and weeding—and then watching your bounty of beauty and goodness burst forth from the ground. Oh, the gratification! It’s just somehow good for the soul. In fact, gardening is good for us in so many ways.
Turns out, it’s good for your kids too.
A 2016 study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics shows that children who help with gardening continue to reap benefits later in life:
Aside from the increase in nutritional benefits it offers, childhood gardening, especially in community, has also been shown to help with mental and social abilities such as:
Seventy American colleges and universities and seventeen high schools are currently collaborating in a project designed to help students “Get Your Fruits and Vegetables.” The Get Fruved project uses social media, campus events and peer interaction to get high school and college students to improve dietary intake, increase physical activity and improve overall stress-management skills.
Not everyone has the space to garden, but even a small patio can be a great place to grow a container garden.
Resources:
My 5.5 yo son LOVES to help garden both working with the flowers and veggies. Hes so proud when he can show people what he grew and he loves eating stuff directly from the garden!!!
Alison, thanks for your comment! So glad your little one loves to both help with the gardening and enjoy the fruits of his labor. And kudos to you for instilling his love of fresh produce!
My son loved it too, he is now grown up but he still comes and waters the garden, and picks the weeds when he is visiting. It is so nice working beside him again.
Will eat if they dont know its in food!
Gardening can really help increase the chances of the kiddos eating their veggies!
This past year we had a wonderful little garden. But Mr. Groundhog kept enjoying all the fruits of our labour. Next year we plan to hang diy Garden baskets on the fence. We are hopeful this will help keep our not so little groundhog friend out of reach.