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Kids Gardening Tools

Kids gardening tools have become very popular in the last couple of years and manufacturers have reacted to this by introducing more and more to their ranges.

So what is important to know about this kind of tool

If you're been a parent for any length of time you know that your children tend to copy what they see you doing. And if you take the time, you can teach your child a great deal in the garden. (Unlike mine who grew up in the garden and nursery working out there after school. :-) Actually - they all like to "garden"a bit and have small gardens but none of them want to go into the nursery business) In theory (as kids copy what you do) it is important to use your own tools correctly as they will copy your bad habits as well as your best gardening practices.

What Do You Really Have To Know.

The little critters have short attention spans. Much shorter than you can imagine and weeding and working in the same place for very long is not something that's going to happen with most kids.

They love having their own garden! Big time. So the first thing you want to do is give them their own (very small) space where "their" plants will grow. Make this area too large (over a few square feet) and you'll do all the work (you will do much of it anyway so do keep the area small)

Plant things that both quickly and are bullet-proof for small hands and inquisitive minds. Beans from seed are wonderful.

Marigolds from seed and/or plants are excellent (we used to send marigold seedlings for school garden projects in our area because we knew they'd survive almost anything a kid could do)

Bigger seed (corn, beans) tends to germinate faster and this is a good thing.

Do get the planting instructions right or be prepared with a few windowsill transplants to serruptiously replace any that die or get eaten.

Have fun! Do it in short bursts and when their attention wanders - you can either divert to something else or call it a day.

Remember this important bit of advice - your job is not to teach them to garden, to teach them to work (all this will come later) - but rather to give them an enjoyable time in the garden with you.

Kids Gardening Tools

Get kids gardening tools that are sized to their hands. This sounds pretty basic but you'll be surprised how many parents think this isn't important

If you wear glove - ask them if they want to wear gloves?

Don't break the bank on kids garden tools (look on ebay etc) but don't buy the cheap, tin-stamped ones that bend and rust away in a few days either. The child will have them for several years so look for a decent set.

Note that cheaper stamped ones sometimes have rough edges. A file or emery paper can be used to smooth out any jagged edges to prevent nicks.

You can have your child paint the handles of the tools their own bright colors. This is particularly useful if you have more than one child and more than one tool set. Hobby enamel works well on most surfaces and you never know what colors will be chosen or where the paint will wind up - but hey, it's a great proejct.

Click here to ask about kids gardening tools

I have located one source for gardening tools. If you are interested, click the photo below.