Gardening with preschoolers might sound messy or overwhelming, but it’s actually one of the easiest (and most rewarding!) ways to combine play, learning, and outdoor time. Whether you have a backyard garden, a sunny windowsill, or just a few flower pots, your child can experience the joy of watching something grow from a tiny seed into a beautiful plant.
In this post, I’ll walk you through the basics of gardening with little ones, plus give you simple activity ideas and a free way to get started!
Why Garden with Preschoolers?
Gardening is more than just digging in the dirt (although that’s a preschooler’s favorite part!). It’s packed with early learning benefits:
- Responsibility – Kids love having “jobs” like watering or checking the plants each day.
- Science – Learn about plant life cycles, weather, insects, and more through real-life experiences.
- Fine motor skills – Digging, planting, and even pulling weeds help build hand strength and coordination.
- Patience – Watching a seed grow into something amazing doesn’t happen overnight. Preschoolers learn that good things take time.
- Connection – Gardening is something you do together, and it can be a calm, screen-free time to chat and bond.
What Should You Grow?
Start small! Choose plants that are easy to grow, quick to sprout, and fun for kids to interact with.
Some great options:
- Beans – Fast growers and fun to observe (especially in a jar—see below!)
- Sunflowers – Huge payoff with big, beautiful blooms
- Carrots – Fun to pull out of the ground when they’re ready
- Herbs – Basil and mint smell amazing and grow quickly
- Radishes – Super speedy harvest time
No yard? No problem! Use pots, buckets, egg cartons, or even old boots. A sunny windowsill is enough to grow something magical.
Easy Gardening Activities for Preschoolers
Here are a few simple ways to make gardening part of your week, no fancy tools required.
1. Bean Sprout in a Jar
Let your child watch roots and stems form right before their eyes!
- Wet a paper towel and fold it inside a clear jar.
- Tuck a dry bean between the towel and the glass.
- Set it in a sunny window and mist daily.
- Watch it sprout and grow over the next few days!
2. Grow a Radish in a Cup
Plant radish seeds in a clear plastic cup so they can watch the roots grow down and the green shoots grow up.
- Fill a clear plastic cup with potting soil.
- Plant 2–3 radish seeds near the side so you can see them sprout.
- Water gently and place the cup in a sunny spot.
- Watch how quickly the radish roots and shoots grow — radishes are super fast growers!
Radishes sprout in 3–7 days, super rewarding for little ones who don’t like to wait. You can pull and eat the radish in about 3–4 weeks!
3. Grow Grass in a Sock (Silly Grass Head)
Kids plant grass seeds inside an old sock or stocking to create a silly "grass head" — it grows hair that you can trim!
- Fill the toe of an old sock with a few spoonfuls of grass seed.
- Add potting soil on top and tie the sock closed to make a ball shape.
- Set the sock in a shallow dish with a little water.
- Keep the sock damp and place it in a sunny window.
- In about a week, “hair” (grass!) will start growing!
It’s silly, sensory, and easy. You can even decorate the sock with googly eyes or a drawn-on face.
Learning Through Gardening
Gardening is a great way to naturally explore:
- Life cycles
- Weather tracking
- Counting and measuring
- Color and shape identification
- New vocabulary (sprout, seedling, harvest, compost…)
You can even keep a simple garden journal where kids draw what they see each week, or use printable plant markers to label what they’ve planted.
Gardening with preschoolers doesn’t need to be complicated. With a few seeds, a bit of curiosity, and a willingness to get your hands dirty, you’ll be amazed at how much your child can learn while having a whole lot of fun.
Let the growing begin!
Xx Jeni
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