How to create a child-friendly garden for your little ones to learn and fall in love with nature

Any parent will tell you that children are 30-40 per cent mud, soil, clinging snails and unidentifiable vegetable matter. 

Nothing attracts a child like the chance to get covered in mess in the garden.

So why not channel this desire by creating a child-friendly garden to get them outside exploring and learning about nature?

Every junior school has a sensory table where pupils play with sand, dry beans and cups of water. 

Place one of these outside and you won’t have to clean the kitchen floor every time your offspring fancies slopping water all over the place.

Build a mud kitchen

If you want to let them really go for it, build or buy a wooden mud kitchen for messy soil, sand and water play. 

A mini-kitchen with cupboards, spatulas, rolling pins etc and ‘sinks’ made from mixing bowls, will allow the little ’uns to copy their mums and dads preparing meals and will get them interested in food and where it comes from.

For the adventurous, a climbing wall made from plywood with climbing holds screwed to it will add interest. 

You can double its function by painting it black to make a chalkboard. This can even be integrated into a bigger climbing frame complete with a slide or rope swings.

Make it child’s play

‘Play on all of the senses to really get children excited about the space,’ says Richard Wilford, manager of garden design at Kew Gardens, South-West London.

‘At Kew, children enter via a tunnel of scented star jasmine before arriving first at a 200-year-old English oak tree with bark that is rough to the touch.

Elements such as a sandpit, winding paths, colourful planting like flowering cherry trees and pink candy floss grass take children on a sensory adventure, and offer plenty of space for young imaginations to run wild.

‘Shady spots are also crucial, and incorporating natural play equipment such as a log trail or insect house will appeal to little ones of all ages.’

Very young children love to see themselves in mirrors. And if you’re worried about breakages, go for an acrylic one. It adds a lot of depth to small gardens.

Splashing fun

A water feature with running stream can be a calming point in the garden —maybe somewhere to sit and read a favourite book on a warm day.

Or you could make a mini-pond to attracts frogs, newts and other wildlife with no more than a big bucket, or old bath. Just remember that any water play should be supervised for safety.

Bag the best seats

‘Make space to relax,’ says Amy Gunning, who is designing a garden for adults and children at the Royal Horticultural Society’s Tatton Park Flower Show at Knutsford, Cheshire. 

‘Seating which is the right size for children is often forgotten and is key for them to be able to relax and spend time in the garden. Beanbags are a great way to make this fun.’

Sounds magical

When we think about gardens, we tend to concentrate on how they look and feel — and forget that they can sound quite magical, too. 

Wind chimes can be made from bamboo or metal rods. A wind sock sewn from leftover fabric can be added to show the wind’s direction.

Pick of the bunch

Your children might not be enthused about the vegetable patch — potatoes aren’t very interesting underground — but a fruit patch where little fingers can pluck sweet strawberries will go down well.

Join the club

If you have the space, there’s nothing that will fire their imagination and spark independence like their own den or treehouse. 

It could be a clubhouse or pirate ship or rocket to the moon. For older teenagers, add a firepit for late-night ghost stories with friends. Be sure to supervise.

Swap toys for tools

Get them into gardening by buying them their own brightly coloured tool set. Under-sixes won’t be the greatest help, but it could fire a lifelong hobby — or maybe even a career.

‘The trick is to give children something fun that they won’t find inside,’ says Catherine Hughes, author of A Year Of Nature Craft And Play.

‘Outdoor play equipment is great if you have the space, but you can also provide lots of stimulation with something as basic as a mud kitchen or a water play area.

Another good option is to embrace wildlife gardening; pollinator-friendly plants, bird feeders and insect hotels provide something interesting for kids to explore whenever they go outside.

‘I always suggest giving children their own patch,’ adds Catherine. ‘Choosing the plants, designing the layout, and looking after their plot is a great way to interest them. And they’ll learn at the same time.’