I love gardening, and you’ve probably read elsewhere on the blog that my garden is my sanctuary, a place not just for growing and working in but for family fun and relaxation.
You can find children’s gardening inspiration all over the internet so I thought I’d put together some different kids gardening ideas to try during lockdown. I’m talking fun, wildlife, unusual gardening and thinking about local communities too (once we’re finally liberated!)
Gardening is wonderful for health and wellbeing so it’s a great outdoor activity to encourage children to try though it can be daunting to get them started.
Right now during the Coronavirus pandemic lots of kids are bored, fed up and struggling to find interest in anything so I’ve put together some different, fun ideas to get children into the garden, not just to grow things but to simply enjoy nature and being outdoors.
Gardening for well-being
We’ve been a bit flat here at Kids of the Wild too.
Before lockdown we’d dreamed up dozens of fun children’s gardening projects for Caroline and friends to do with her Blackbirds gardening club but it obviously hasn’t happened and may not for months, if at all this year.
Instead we’re using lockdown time to plan garden club activities for the future. Caroline and I will still do everything we’ve planned in the garden, it’ll just be on our own rather than with all her gardening club friends. It won’t be the same but we count ourselves extremely lucky to have an outdoor growing space at all.
We’ll post plenty of updates here so that the Blackbirds can try things in their own gardens, and all you lovely readers can have a go with your families too.
It’s a hobby I believe strongly in passing on to the next generation, as a passion in itself and equally as a gateway to wider adventures and activities outdoors.
No garden? Grow indoors
If you don’t have access to a garden, check out my 22 cool suggestions for no-garden activities like growing astronaut food on the windowsill, or check out these 17 ideas for connecting with nature at home – there’s LOADS you can do indoors and even on the doorstep.
Things to do in the Garden with Children
Think FUN!
To inspire children to get into it more, we need to make the garden a fun space to be. With kids at home 24-7 during lockdown, us gardeners can’t be too precious about our prize plants! Here comes the fun…
1. Turn the garden into a fort!
My absolute favourite idea for a child-friendly garden might sound anti-social to some but the kids will LOVE it; turn a hedge into a castellated ‘fort’ or ‘castle’ wall!
In 2019 we transformed this fast growing hedge into a castellated wall within a matter of weeks!
You can see where we’re still growing the gap to make a castle door. This is an internal hedge separating our back garden from land we rent as a veg patch, but you could do the same with any deciduous hedge. If the neighbours aren’t too keen it can easily be grown back to normal after lockdown!
NB To transform an evergreen hedge, you’ll need to seek expert advice or grow it into shape, like topiary, rather than cutting back existing growth, to avoid permanent damage.
2. Give children autonomy in the garden
It’s obvious really, but if we give kids their own plots, they’re more likely to identify their own gardening interests, which will be far more fun than feeling ‘forced’ to be out there by us boring parents.
Caroline has three small gardening spaces of her own, two for flowers and one on the veg patch. Consequently she’s growing 9 different varieties of Dahlia this year (including a new variety called Tropical Breeze which we are being sent to trial by Thompson and Morgan), all chosen by herself as I’m not a fan of Dahlias! Look out for our upcoming dahlia-growing post.
Allowing Caroline autonomy over her gardening choices has led to both her being enthused to get outside and me learning a new skill – I’ve never grown Dahlias before! Win, win, and thank you Thompson and Morgan for the inspiration.
3. Plant pumpkins for Hallowe’en
What could be more fun than watching your own pumpkin grow through the year to harvest and carve just in time for Hallowe’en?!
We tried this last year but planted our seeds too late so our pumpkins weren’t big enough by November; this year we’ve started them in the greenhouse, but a windowsill will do. It’s not too late, get planting now.
Instructions are on the seed packet – all you need is a pot, some peat-free compost, pumpkin seeds and a decent-sized sunny spot to plant them into once germinated. The seeds at the bottom of the page are sold in aid of Children in Need.
Learn expert techniques in our pumpkin carving guide, & make creepy trick or treat pumpkin guts.
Think WILDLIFE
Time spent in the garden is much more fun when accompanied by birds, beasties and even mammals from the animal kingdom. Most children love the idea of helping encourage and look after wild creatures, making their own ‘back garden nature reserve‘. A simple way to start is with a bee hotel.
4. Open an Air Bee n’ Bee
My sister bought this one for Caroline for Christmas, and added the personalisation herself – Caroline was thrilled. We’ve yet to welcome any guests but we’re hopeful!
Position the bee house at least a metre from the ground, on a south or south-east facing wall in full sun. Don’t plant anything directly in front as the bees need a direct flight path to and from their new home!
Try making your own bee hotel with this helpful download from The Wildlife Trusts, and discover a whole world of fascinating bee information in this gorgeous book The Secret Lives of Garden Bees.
5. Grow a grassy habitat under the trampoline
Why haven’t I thought of this before?! This year we’re not mowing under the trampoline, to see what wildlife the resulting long grass attracts to the garden. It saves masses of lawn mowing hassle too.
Initially just the cats were loving it but we’ve recently found a young frog hanging out under there, the exact result we hoped for.
We’re going to grow everlasting peas up the legs and possibly even ivy, so it feels completely integrated into the garden. Look out for pics on Facebook.
6. Grow wildflowers to attract bugs, bees, butterflies & pollinators
This is a favourite children’s gardening project and one that’s excellent for the environment. There are lots of different ways to grow wildflowers at home: –
Bee bombs
Last year we were sent a pack of Bee Bomb seeds to plant – little balls of clay filled with seeds that you simply fling onto bare earth. I was very dubious, but they flowered last year and this year the space is overflowing with plants again.
Wildflower meadow
This year we’ve scarified the front lawn and sown wildflower seeds to grow a proper meadow, but I have a bad feeling it’s been too dry as there’s currently no sign of growth! Watch this space.
Container wildflowers
Our very first foray into wildflower growing was in an old recycled wheelbarrow. Really simple and a fun project to involve the kids with too.
Read how we did it in my mini wildflower meadow in a container tutorial.
Think DIFFERENT
7. Grow a meal-themed vegetable bed
Veg growing, whilst therapeutic, uplifting and rewarding for many of us, might initially seem boring for some children until they see and taste the results later in the year.
Make sowing veg something really different with a themed plot such as a ‘Christmas Dinner Bed‘ (growing all the produce in time to harvest for Christmas dinner in December), or or a ‘Soup Bed‘ (with carrots & coriander or leeks & potatoes for a specific soup recipe) or buy a pre-sorted pack and grow your own pizza toppings! (There’s a link at the bottom)
8. Try native American ‘Three Sisters’ companion planting
This year, we’re going really different on the veg patch with a ‘Three Sisters’ bed. It’s a native American idea (so we’ll see how it works in the UK climate), involving companion planting on a mound of earth to grow sweetcorn, climbing beans and squash, with a flower or two added for prettiness too.
I’m working on a full post about this which should be out soon but what I’ve loved so far is seeing the corn seedlings produce their own water droplets – I’m not sure of the science behind this but will research it for the post.
Think COMMUNITY
9. Hold a social day in your garden
When lockdown is over, what better way to celebrate than to invite friends and neighbours to spend an afternoon in your garden – a great chance to reconnect with people after these peculiar months of isolation. The RHS Schools Gardening Campaign set up Grow Social this year with just this aim in mind. Obviously Covid-19 has put a stop to it for now but why not plan to host a garden social after ‘liberation’!
More Inspiration – Gardening, Outdoors, Lockdown
For more isolation and lockdown activities, check out the Kids of the Wild’s gardening pages and read our why nature matters suggestions. Try this simple coconut bird feeder tutorial too or make a calendar tree to count the days of lockdown.
For ongoing isolation activities don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and sign up to the website to receive the latest posts to your inbox.
For more kids gardening inspiration from Thompson and Morgan read their regular gardening blog round-ups, including some Kids of the Wild ideas. Check out their latest post here
Wild wishes for lockdown family fun in the garden!
Get the Gear
Click on the images to purchase supplies from Amazon.
Pumpkin seeds
Children’s first gardening set
Peat free compost
Pumpkin growing book age 6-7
Pumpkin growing book age 4-8
Monty Don’s Complete Gardener book
Biodegradable plant pots
Taste of Italy pizza growing kit
Spade and fork set
Garden trampoline
Hedge cutters
Bee Bombs wildflower seeds
I love all your different garden ideas. Turning the hedge into a fort is a fun idea and I like the thought of giving children their own area of the garden. We have a ‘Muddy Puddles’ area for Sophie but she’s not yet into trying to grow her own things although is happy to help out with the veg planting and seeing things grow. Interesting to read about your companion planting. We’ve planted beans and sweetcorn out together too. Thanks for sharing with #CountryKids
Great to hear you’ve done beans and sweetcorn together too! Our beans don’t seem as keen to twine around the corn as they do with beanpoles but hopefully they’ll get the hang of it eventually 😆
Great ideas – I love the idea of a themed veg bed. Out of interest, have you actually seen bees use the Air Bee n Bee (cute name!)? #culturedkids
Aha, it’s a good question about the bee hotel. Not a solitary bee 🐝 (pardon the pun!) seen as yet. I wonder whether it’s the colour or the paint smell?
Maybe it takes a while for them to decide to settle – can be the same for bird boxes too I think.
I hope so. We have dozens of bees in the garden. Lots of bumble bee holes in the soil!
What brilliant ideas. Love the simplicity of not mowing under the trampoline to encourage wildlife! How fab. Good to hear the bee bombs work too – I’d love to give them a try! #culturedkids
I can’t believe we’ve spent years moving the trampoline to mow under it either! It looks great and we’ve already seen more voles and frogs
Lots of great ideas here. We are in the countryside but don’t have a big garden. However I’ve got my daughter growing some lettuce and sunflowers. I’ve had to order more sunflower seeds though as they germinated and something ate all the heads off, should have covered them over. #countrykids
What a shame about the sunflowers. Slugs or something? Great you’ve been growing even in a small space though, having even a small garden is a blessing during lockdown
How much water do you incorporate? Shallow dishes for insects, or even a small pond can attract all sorts of wildlife. I once put a small zinc bath, partly counter sunk in a school garden. On the first day we saw a mother bird bringing all her hatchlings down to drink from it. You don’t need a big pond to attract frogs and will soon have tadpoles. I made a very untidy pile of branches in the garden – not the neat ‘log pile’ that you see recommended! It has taken a couple of years, but we have now seen hedgehogs in the garden. Our neighbours, who have been here many years told us it was the first time they have seen hedgehogs in the garden. I had an insect hotel and have buried it under leaves and garden debris because that is what attracts insects. Don’t throw away broken crockery or terracotta pots.Use them to make a heap with lots of leaves and garden debris. It will provide lots of places for all types of insects and maybe a hedgehog. You can use bricks or pebbles to make it look attractive to us. Children can have fun doing this.
Thanks for your lovely thoughts Sheila, it sounds like you have a garden teeming with wildlife and very simply done. Perfect
Lovely ideas! Gardening with children lets them express their independence and learn responsibility! The last fun garden activity was to upcycling old, beloved toys into flower planters! The kids love it!
The upcycled toys are a great idea. I’m imagining geraniums growing in old Tonka trucks! It’s good to hear your kids enjoy being outdoors in the garden, it’s so good for them. Thanks for reading and wild wishes to you & yours