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Children need hobbies. Hobbies allow them to relax and unwind from a stressful day at school. Music has the power to soothe some children; for others, a picture says what a thousand words cannot. We have discussed theatre, dance, music and art in previous issues of our magazine; in this one, we bring you the benefits of gardening and how it can be a delightful pursuit for children.

Children and

A child as young as three or four years of age can be taught to develop an interest in gardening, and can continue this hobby throughout her life. All she needs is a little help. You may not have a green thumb and may know next to nothing about gardening, but if you know where to start, a ‘task’ might turn into a hobby for you too!

Growing green childrenGardening is a non-competitive and relaxing activity that takes children out into the open. It teaches them to be socially and environmentally responsible, and can be of benefit both to the environment and your child (read our Children and the Environment article in Issue 8 to know more about the role that children can play in conservation). Gardening also helps children develop a better understanding of scientific concepts like photosynthesis, respiration, the nitrogen cycle, the water cycle, and the carbon cycle. And like any other productive activity, gardening can teach a child to take pride in her work and become more confident of her capabilities.

Gardening

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Mumbai-based Smita Kharbanda has dedicated the last 18 years of her life to spreading awareness about the environment by conducting gardening classes for young children. She is the founder of ‘EcoKids’, a project she started in 2009 to provide a hands-on experience of gardening and other environmental topics to young children. Kharbanda has worked with kids ranging from three to 12 year-olds, and she believes that “gardening is very good exercise for children who are hyperactive or are going through depression. Children who garden are never aggressive since they develop sensitivity to nature. They never pluck a flower because they know that it will then die. They don’t catch butterflies, which, they know, help in pollination. They associate worms with vermin-culture, and when they grow older, they learn about biodegradable and non-biodegradable materials. They know what is good for the planet. I think that gardening should be made mandatory in schools, with every school scheduling a gardening period in their weekly timetable.”

How does your garden grow?Children can start gardening from the age of three or four years. However, the tasks they do can increase in complexity as they grow older.

It is a given that gardening will hold a young child’s attention, since most love to play with mud (although parents may not be as enthusiastic about this!). The most exciting aspect for younger kids is ‘pouring water’ for the plants (use colourful and manageable water cans or mugs). Children between the ages of three and five can easily manage such activities as watering and digging. You can also help your child grow grass or small plants like mustard or coriander in coconut shells (draw a face on the coconut shell to make it even more interesting).

As they grow slightly older, children will enjoy and learn from more complicated activities, such as planting seeds, pruning plants, weeding, plucking ripened fruits/

vegetables, making compost, and even taking care of bonsai. By the time they are about 12 years of age, they can be completely responsible for the garden and be well able to prune plants, add fertilizer, and trim plants not just for beauty, but also to encourage maximum growth.

Here are some practical tips on how to develop and encourage your child’s interest in gardening:• Take a walk in parks with your child and

collect leaves – make posters, cards and tablemats with these.

• Visit flower and horticultural shows and exhibitions.

• Organise family picnics at parks where there are different plant varieties. This will make children curious about plant types.

• Involve children in planning the garden – what to grow, how to design it, etc.

• Paint and decorate pots for a colourful look.

• To get younger children to join in the fun, use colourful, kid-sized gardening tools. Gardening gloves come in wonderful colours and patterns as well!

• Even cleaning the tools can be made fun by splashing water around.

• Weeding can be a boring chore for children; so be creative – enact stories of a prince saving the beautiful garden by destroying the monster weeds.

• Use good quality seeds of plants that are easy to grow. When your child sees results, this will motivate her further.

• If you are growing vegetables, use them in your cooking. This is one meal that your child will gobble up!

• Make greeting cards using pictures of the plants your children have grown.

• Invite neighbourhood kids home and have a garden party or gardening playdate. This will help motivate not only your children, but their friends too!

• Make sensory gardens with plants like touch-me-not, lavender, etc. This is perfect for very small children or children with disabilities.

Once your children are interested in caring for a garden, it is time to teach them how

“Children love to garden. They do what they are told and they are so excited. They rarely ask ‘when will this flower?’ but simply revel in the whole process. They see the plant growing and feel proud that they were a part of this.”

– Reena Chengappa, My Sunny Balcony

“We grow plants by telling stories. If I just plant a seed, these children will not come back to my class the next time! I have to make gardening interesting by playing music and telling stories. The present project that I am doing with my students is a ‘Pizza Patch,’ where we are growing tomatoes, basil, onions. These are a few things that I have to keep introducing to get the children motivated.”

– Smita Kharbanda, Founder, EcoKids

to go about it. Start by giving them seeds to take care of and grow. Then you can slowly introduce them to the various jobs that need to be done in order to maintain a garden. Gardening can be a fun hobby or a daunting task; it all depends on how you teach your child.

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And if you think growing a garden requires a big bungalow with acres of space or a yard large enough to grow enough fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs, think again! You will be surprised at how much you can grow in the smallest of spaces. From innovative vertical gardening systems to hanging pots and easy-access planters, there are many methods that maximise space and allow you to have a little green oasis even in your balcony. Varying the size and height of plants with the help of plant stands and hanging baskets can turn a corner into a mini-garden (Check out www.mysunnybalcony.com for ideas on how you can have a veritable botanical garden in your small balcony at home!).

Making a Career out of a HobbyIf your child is very interested in gardening, and would like to pursue a career in this,

don’t worry. Passion in gardening does not mean that she will only become a gardener! You have a number of options today which demand knowledge of plants and gardening techniques, from landscape architecture, landscape design, and horticultural engineering to botanical engineering and environmental engineering.

Useful Resources• The Gardening Book by Jane Bull• Sunflower Houses: Inspiration from the

Garden – A Book for Children and their Grown-Ups by Sharon Lovejoy

• Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: Gardening Together with Children by Sharon Lovejoy

• http://indigarden.blogspot.sg/• http://www.homeandgardenideas.com/

category/gardening• www.geekgardener.in

General Gardening TipsBe sure to meet the needs of the different plants. Each plant requires a different amount of water and sunlight. It is advisable to consult a local gardener for advice on this.

You will need to feed the plants some sort of fertilizer or plant food. Each plant variety requires a different amount of fertilizer. Instead of fertilizer, you can use compost (check out our supplementary feature on how to make compost at home).

You will need some tools to take care of the garden. For a basic garden, you may need a watering can, scalpel/gardening scissors, and a pair of gloves.

You have to repot plants periodically in order to ensure optimal growth. The best time to repot your plants is from late-winter to spring. Fast growing plants should be repotted once a year while slower growing plants should be repotted every two-three years.

Gardening classes teach children how to take care of a garden and to be environmentally responsible. Here, your child can meet other like-minded children. These classes are led by an experienced teacher who can guide them, using small, easy steps. Most of these classes are in a group setting, which helps children bond and develop lasting friendships. As parents, our job lies in sustaining the same interest at home, by having the child demonstrate what she learned in class. Gradually, your child will start applying what she learnt in the class and help you in the garden and perhaps grow and maintain it too!

- Anupama Sridhar, 15 years, Irvine, California

Image courtesy: EcoKids, Mumbai

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An erstwhile finance professional, Renuka Vaidyanathan now wears many interesting hats. She is a pro-bono events organiser in the cultural space and also writes every now and then about people, places and events.

Garden trimmings and kitchen and food waste together constitute about 25 percent of the municipal solid waste stream in any country. That’s a lot of waste to send to landfills and incinerators when it could become useful and environmentally beneficial compost instead! Composting reduces what I throw away, it reuses my kitchen waste and it recycles all organic material for my kitchen. Children should be taught the art of composting, which, albeit a little messy at first, can become an immensely satisfying activity.

What is composting?Composting is a way of breaking down organic matter such as kitchen waste and garden trimmings into useful nutrients for the soil. It improves the health of the soil by breaking up clayey soil and enhancing its structure. It is a valuable resource for any garden and the results will be visible for all to see.

How does one compost?Composting can be done in special compost bins that are available in the market, or even in ordinary pots, by using the waste generated in your home and garden.

What you need for composting:• Used flower pots (in terracotta or plastic)• Soil • Lid for the pot

• Kitchen waste• Garden trimmings• A rake

The process:• Use a plant pot with holes in the bottom

for drainage. • Cover the bottom with coconut husk or

cork. You can also use coco-peat which is readily available in gardening shops and supermarkets.

• Cover this with a layer of soil. • Put your kitchen waste for the day over

this soil. Chop up banana peels and orange rinds to aid faster composting.

• Cover this waste with another layer of soil. • Add a layer of garden trimmings. • Cover with soil. • Repeat with kitchen waste and garden

trimmings on alternate layers till the pot is full. Covering the waste with soil ensures that there are minimal flies and smell.

• Stir the contents of this pot with a

rake twice a week. Keep it covered at all times.

• You can begin the process with about four to six pots. As the first pot fills up, move on to the next and so on. The fourth or fifth pot will be full in about six to eight weeks, and that is enough time for the contents of the first pot to be ready for use!

• Remember to stir regularly twice a week. • When the compost is ready, use it as a

top layer around the plants. It can be used on garden beds and in containers.

• The bacteria that break down your compost need air to survive. A week or two after the pile is made, these bacteria will start to die as they use up the available air in the pile. This drop in the amount of bacteria will result in the compost pile cooling off a bit from its peak temperature. When this happens it’s time to turn the pile to get more air into it. When turning your compost pile, move

Teach your Child to Make Compost at Home- Contributed by Renuka Vaidyanathan

“Recycling waste into compost teaches children that they have a responsibility to the planet that goes beyond their own home.”

– Chengappa

Image courtesy: Renuka Vaidyanathan

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Vegetable and fruit peels

Uncooked and rotting vegetable scraps

Tea bags,

Coffee grounds

Crushed egg shells

Dried flowers

Grass clippings*Egg shells and banana peels are my absolute favourites as they break down very quickly and provide instant nutrients to plants. They take less than a month to break down, while an orange peel takes much longer.

Shredded paper (non-glossy)

Used kitchen tissues

Kitchen and toilet paper cardboard rolls (cut up to speed up the process)

Dryer lint (if the fabrics are cotton)

Dried leaves

Small twigs

Non chemically treated saw dust, if available

Corn cobs*I do not use newspaper as the newsprint may be chemical-laden.

Green materials Green materials

the drier material from the outer edges of the pile into the centre and break up any clumps to get as much air into the mixture as you can. Moisten any of the materials as you go if they seem dry.

You may be squeamish in the initial weeks at the sight of the gooey, wormy mixture, but as the weeks go by and the compost is formed, it starts smelling good (like soil and rain, which is a wonderful smell) and does not look slimy anymore but becomes crumbly. You can even keep a dish under the composting pot to collect the excess water, which can go directly to the plants.

Getting the right mixture of brown (carbon) materials and green (nitrogenous) materials will make a big difference to your compost. Adding too much brown material will result in a compost pile that takes a

long time to break down. Adding too much green material will result in a compost pile

that is slimy and smelly and doesn’t break down well.

Some useful websites:http://www.compost-info-guide.com/make_better_compost.htmhttp://www.wikihow.com/Build-a-Compost-Bin

Image courtesy: EcoKids, Mumbai