1. Good Organic Gardening - January-February 2016

Kids in the garden | WEEKEND GARDENING
Curiosity: this is a Case Moth
— did you know what it was?
Snack-attack
plants
Plants that will have the kids snacking
away in the garden, straight off the plants,
include strawberries, cherry tomatoes,
cucumbers, sweet corn, acerola cherries,
passionfruit, blueberries and raspberries.
but they turn it into fertiliser in the form of
castings and worm wee for the garden.
Pets and other creatures: Pets give
children the skills and knowledge to be
responsible for another living thing, whether
it’s a stick insect or a dog.
Another way to bring interactive fun to
the backyard garden space is to keep a few
chickens or ducks, or maybe even some little
living lawn-mowers like guinea pigs. And
don’t forget about silkworms and ant and
worm farms.
Plant it up
Edibles: Growing plants that can be easily
accessed and picked for snacks on the
run can be a fun way to learn about food
and be healthy as well. Our acerola cherry
(Malpighia glabra) is a big hit and a great
substitute for a cherry tree in warmer
climates. The fruit is delicious and contains
up to 36 times more vitamin C than an
orange. Any edibles that are fast growing
and fun to harvest or prepare for meals are
always good choices.
Scented plants: Scent is one of the
strongest triggers of memories. To me,
any garden, whether there are children
frequenting it or not, needs to have a variety
of scented plants, with both fragrant foliage
and perfumed blooms.
Scented foliage, of course, covers
a large number of the herbs we know
as well as great Aussie species like
lemon-scented myrtle (Backhousia
citriodora) and cinnamon myrtle
(Backhousia myrtifolia). Besides the
common herbs, top choices are scented
geraniums, lavender, old-fashioned roses,
freesias, gardenias, jasmine, brunfelsia,
frangipani, wisteria, port wine magnolia —
the list could be endless.
Keeping the
dream alive
In an increasingly busy world with both
parents working, a plethora of electronic
devices, TV and other gadgets, children need
more encouragement to play outside. Trying
to find that elusive spare time to spend
together as a family — preferably outdoors —
is vital. So create your adventure playground
today with a mix of natural environments for
nature watch, a vegetable patch, a sensual
garden with plants for scent and touch and
maybe a couple of chickens and a bit of
space to run around and dream in.
Hopefully, you have been inspired to get
the kids out into the garden to become the
next generation of gardeners, naturalists,
entomologists and environmentalists — or
just lovers of the great outdoors.
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