GARDENING BY CHILDREN

To my knowledge there is no any magazine or periodical that includes a page to encourage love for plants and interest in gardening directly to the children in our country. As it is fact that children of today are leading generation of our tomorrow, so it is up to parents and those who themselves have an interest love for plants to imbue in their children some of their own enthusiasm.

Children quite often plead for a small garden of their own and more often than not, even if the request is acceded to, they are given a totally useless and ignored corner, unsuitable in soil. Any child, who displays a genuine interest in plant and likes to learn about them, should be provided with best available facilities and guidance because failure due to unsuitable sites and growing condition and improper grading always lead to their discouragement.

Children are often impatient and it is essential that the plant they grow should be early maturing with attractive flower coloration. Such character will thrill them to sow seeds and to see the rapid germination and how soon there will be flower. Show them too, that they can have seeds for next year sowing. A good way in which to encourage plant multiplication interest is to take them into gardens show them some of new flowers. Tell them the names, preferably the common name to start with and any story which may lay behind the name. It is sensible always to use the common names first, increasing interest will create desire to know its scientific or botanical name. Provide them also with books having plenty of pictures of simple and easy plant, which they can identify easily. It will also inspire them to spend some of their pocket money on packets of seeds, which they want to sow in their garden. They can also be encouraged to busy plats from a local garden center or nursery.

With increasing experience and interest they will want to know how to increase their own plats by cutting or by division and they can develop a portion of their gardens into small nursery areas, and even perhaps have a small from in which to put their initial efforts at propagation.