There are many benefits in introducing children to grow their own food. Parents and educators may wish to help develop responsibility, a sense of accomplishment and contribution to the home, as well as give kids the opportunity to see the magic of watching something grow. Your motivations will be your own, but I encourage you to grow vegetables with your kids.
We came up with a list of “kid-friendly” veggies that
- Kids enjoy – nothing beats picking something and eating it right on the spot
- Are easy to grow – something you’re pretty sure will be successful
You’ll need to consider these suggestions in light of what grows best in your area. For instance, melons don’t do well in our cool, foggy summer climate, so alas, we don’t bother growing them. Lastly, make sure your kids have ease of access to their gardens – either in containers or narrow beds. Remember they’ve got more limited vertical and stretch reach. It isn’t much fun having to bushwack your way to get to a bean!
Early season harvest:
1. Radishes
2. Sugar Snap Peas
3. Strawberries (ok, this is a fruit, but so is a tomato! You get the idea.)
Mid-season harvest:
4. Carrots
5. Pole or Bush Beans
6. Cherry Tomatoes
Mid-to-late season harvest:
7. Corn
8. Melons
9. Potatoes
10. Pumpkins
Root crops like radish help break the top crust and is a good companion to carrots. Kids may not swoon over the taste, but radishes grow quickly, and allow your little ones to quickly make a contribution to the dinner table. Carrots are an age-old favorite which kids can munch on as they learn to thin the rows.
Sugar snap peas, strawberries and cherry tomatoes are wonderful “pop-in-your-mouth” food right off the vine or with a quick rinse of water.
Pole beans are fun to trail along teepees, and delicious raw and cooked. We grow a purple variety (“Royal Burgundy”) that turns green when steamed – a “doneness” indicator!
Fresh, sweet corn can’t be beat (even munching it straight off the stalk), but it takes lots of nitrogen.
There’s nothing like the sweetness of home-grown melons, if you’re lucky to have both the space and climate to grow them. They will require lots of water, but little ones will love harvesting their desserts!
Tall, majestic sunflowers are impressive to little kids. The hour or two to harvest seeds is a great bonding opportunity on a balmy Indian summer day.
When it’s time to dig out the potatoes, our son invites his neighborhood friends to find the “Easter eggs”.
Pumpkins and gourds can take a lot of room in a garden, but if you’ve got a spare patch that can be left to cultivate the fruit over 4 months, your kids will love to show them off to their friends and schoolmates!
Next up, the “Top 10 Least Desireable Veggies For Kids To Grow” !
My 8-year-old son’s school sent home a cabbage plant with instructions for 10 weeks and a contest at the end for the biggest head. Couldn’t we just pick one out of the garden? LOL
This inspired my 4-year-old to want a plant of his own. He chose a cucumber plant!
And I agree about the potatoes, especially red ones – they look like dyed eggs in the dirt!
Dataetc, why does it always have to be “the biggest …” ? Argghh! Cukes are excellent and should def. be included. Purple potatoes are now becoming commercially popular. The variety we grow, “All Blue Potato”, is wonderful like cream and butter 🙂
My kids would totally agree with your list… especially the strawberries and peas – my 18 month old has spend the last few months sneaking under the bird nets and shoving as many strawberries or peas in his mouth as he can fit!
LOL, can just imagine a little guy stealthily gorging on the berries and peas! Starting at this age to appreciate the stuff that grows in the open, fresh air is wonderful 🙂 BTW our son “gnawed” on cool broccoli stalks, rather than plastic chew toys when he was teething. Through the years he has rarely ever complained about eating veggies, and when he did, they were poorly prepared anyway!
[…] You get the picture. Some veggies just aren’t ideal crops for a kid’s garden. Children love to graze, and you’ll want to encourage them to enjoy the fruits of their labor. Although there will be exceptions for some kids who really love broccoli or spinach, for first-timers, have a look at our Top 10 Veggies for Kids to Grow. […]
Our grandkids just LOVE to help in the garden when they visit (alas, none of them live nearby). And they love digging potatoes!
One 6 year old said the morning after she came for a visit, “Grandma, can we go to the garden and pick food?” I thought that was adorable and it’s become a favorite memory. She’s now 8.
That’s a heartwarming story, thank you for sharing it. Nurturing minds and bodies also feeds the spirit!
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