How to Begin Gardening- New York Moms
Getting to garden with your kids can be such a heartwarming and impactful family experience. It's not only a fun way to spend time together, it can do so much good both for the planet and for your kids.
How to find out what to plant in your area
If you're thinking about starting a garden with your kids, the first question is probably what kind of plants should you grow? The best way to find out what to plant in your backyard is by going to a nursery! Nurseries will show you the best plants for your region, your backyard, and your lifestyle. They can help you find plants that might be easy to take care of or some good beginner plants. Plus, you’ll see some native plant varieties that can help you know what's possible and better appreciate the plants of your own hometown.
Always remember to check how a plant thrives best. If you plan on gardening in your backyard, make sure to think about how much sun you get, what the soil is like, etc. when you're going to pick out your plants. Also feel free to choose a fun variety of herbs, vegetables, flowers, or just some greenery you feel confident in taking care of. There's no perfect way to choose the best plants for you and your kids to start growing!
Gardening is good for your mental and physical health
Starting a garden with your kids isn’t just about them. Gardening is also a wonderful self-care exercise and helps us feel more connected to the Earth, and to ourselves. It's a great way to step away from your work day, and actually get outside in some sunshine and enjoy the outdoors.
It's also a gentle but fun physical activity that's a good break for our eyes and our bodies from sitting at a desk, staring at a screen, or trying to keep track of all the things all day. And it's good for our minds too! It can help us get out of our heads, do something that feels impactful, and appreciate the Earth and how nature works. It's a beautiful way to get more in touch with ourselves as well as our families and the place we live in.
Plus, if you start gardening things like herbs, veggies, or other edible produce, it can be such a fun addition to your cooking and make your food just that much more healthy and intentional.
Gardening is also so good for your kids!
No matter their age, gardening is a great family activity for your kids too! and, It has a lot of the same benefits for them that it has for you. If they spend all day cooped up in a desk, or a classroom, or looking at a screen, then getting outside, doing something physical, and getting to see something grow can be so, so good for them! Even if they’re just a toddler, those small moments outside can make such an impact.
It's a beautiful way to make happy memories of planting seeds, going out in the garden every day, and having something to work together on as a family. It might help your kids feel more settled at home or just enjoy the outdoors more.
It might feel like a little extra work to include your kids, but I promise it can be one of the most beautiful things about gardening! Gardening is all about celebrating life, and what better way to do that than including your littles? You can all be excited when a little green sprout comes out of the soil, or when the flowers start to bloom, or when you finally get to harvest the vegetable that then goes into their favorite pasta.
Gardening can help build your kids’ confidence and your bond
Imagine a world where every day when you all get home, you just go into the garden and talk about your days while you water the plants. Everyone gets some sunshine, steps away from the screens, and gets to decompress and reconnect a little bit. You just get to be outside and take care of something together. It's these kinds of moments that can really deepen the bonds between you and your kids and work so much more magic than we even realize.
Plus, gardening is such a great way to boost your kids' confidence in taking care of something, feeling like something is really theirs, and helping grow their curiosity. Gardening can help them learn how to pay attention to something's needs, how to be more caring and compassionate, and how to have a little patience when things take longer than they think they should. Plus, it gives them a way that they can be involved in something around the house besides chores.You can put them in charge of watering, of checking if something is ready to be harvested, or whatever they feel ready for. But these little jobs can grow their confidence so much!
Gardening can also deepen their relationship with nature. It can help them better understand how nature works, understand where our food comes from, and better appreciate being outdoors and what it takes to get food on the table.
So how do you get started?
Really, you can start as small as you want. At first, it could be one garden box or one plant, and you slowly build from there. It can totally depend on what your kids feel ready to do, or what feels fun and sustainable for your family. There's no shame in taking it slow and adding on one plant a year, or one plant a season, or whatever works best for your family.
And you don't have to do it all this summer! I really recommend just starting with one or two plants with your kids and seeing if it's something that you enjoy doing together. Make a fun day of it, take your kids to the nursery, and pick out a few plants together that make you excited to try gardening together. It may take a little bit to set up, and a bit of trial and error, but I promise you that gardening can be such a beautiful and wonderful way to spend time together as a family.
Welcome to my visit to The Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art!
First off, a huge thank you to Holly for the incredible tour. The museum is truly a gem, offering a unique blend of contemporary art that both inspires and captivates. The new sculpture garden is particularly stunning and is poised to become a vibrant community hub. I highly recommend visiting the museum to experience it for yourself.
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