Having your kids help plan your family’s spring garden is a great way to get them interested in gardening. Kids who are involved in the planning process are more likely to feel a sense of responsibility for the garden, making them more willing to help maintain it. They will not want their planning efforts to fail because the garden didn’t get enough water or weeds overtook it! From choosing what plants to grow to creating fun crafts for the garden, there are many ways kids of all ages can help plan the spring garden.

Free Printable Garden Planner

Before your family begins to plan the garden, you may find it helpful to have a gardening planner. You can download this free gardening planner from my guest post at 7Sisters Homeschool. You’ll find the planner at the end of the post. The 16-page gardening planner includes pages for:

Monthly, seasonal, and daily planning
Seed starting tracker
Planting schedule
Watering log
Weekly gardening journal
Plant care notes
Garden layout design
Budgeting
And more!

The planner is an excellent tool for not only planning the garden but also tracking the garden’s progress and tasks like watering and pruning.

Kids can help with the garden’s budget.

With gardening, like any project, budgeting is an essential first step. Allowing kids to help make garden planning decisions within budget constraints will help them develop this valuable life skill. Your garden budget will be a factor in determining everything from the type of garden you plant to what equipment your family buys. Tell your kids what the budget is and have them, especially older ones, do things like:

Consider the cost and other pros and cons of planting an in-ground garden versus building raised beds or container gardening.
Look into the cost of buying plants versus starting from seed.
Research the costs of all the supplies and tools you’ll need to plant and maintain the garden.
Conducting a cost-benefit analysis on any other garden decisions.

If the garden your kids want to plan will cost more than is budgeted, they can help look for ways to reduce costs, such as going with lower-cost options, borrowing rather than buying some tools, or repurposing items you already have.

Kids can help choose what to plant in the garden.

Deciding what to plant is a fun way for kids of all ages to get involved in planning the garden. They may want to add some of their favorite fruits and vegetables. Or, they may enjoy growing something they have never tried before. This could be an excellent opportunity for them to try new foods. Also, having a say in what’s planted will likely motivate them to help care for the garden.

While young kids will probably make suggestions based on what they like to eat, older kids can research and learn about various fruits and vegetables and help choose the ones best suited for your garden. When considering what to plant, they can:

Learn what plants grow well in your growing zone.
Research which plants are commonly recommended as easy to grow for beginners.
Consider how much space various plants require.
Keep in mind how much time and effort different types of plants require to maintain.
Learn about companion planting to choose plants that grow well together.
Research plants resistant to pests and diseases common in your area.

Kids can help plan the garden’s layout.

Another way for kids to participate in the planning phase is to help design the garden’s layout. Have them draw a layout to show where each plant or row will go in the garden. They may want to use our garden planner’s dot grid layout page or this garden planning worksheet. Even if you are doing a small container garden on your patio, it can still be fun to let kids have a say in where to place each container. As your kids work on their layouts, encourage them to:

Choose a location for the garden that receives adequate sunlight.
Learn about how much space each plant requires.
Research which plants grow well (or poorly) when planted next to each other.
Consider any special needs plants may have, such as a trellis for climbing plants.
Make sure the garden will be accessible for watering, weeding, and harvesting.

Kids can make crafts for the garden.

Having the kids create crafts and DIY projects for the garden can help get them excited about gardening. It’s a great way to involve younger kids who may not be ready to weigh the pros and cons of budgeting decisions or research companion planting. However, many older kids will also enjoy these projects. Here are several ideas:

Make garden markers to label the plants.
Build a scarecrow to scare away pests.
Paint strawberry rocks to keep birds away from your berries.
Create decorative stepping stones to display in or around the garden.
Build a trellis together if you’re growing plants that require one.

When the Planning is Complete

When your family is finished planning the garden, the real fun begins! It’s time to start building raised beds, placing containers, or preparing a section of your yard for planting. While it’s likely you won’t be able to put all of your kids’ plans into place, just having some input should make them feel more invested in the garden. As they help plant the garden and watch the plants grow, they will see their plans come to fruition.

This post was originally published on March 6, 2021, and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.