BY HEJIRA CONVERY, KINDICARE

FEBRUARY 7, 2025

Although a big backyard is the great Australian dream, you don’t need a large outdoor area to garden as a family.  

As long as you have ample light and airflow, there are loads of edible and decorative plants you can grow in your kitchen, living room or semi-indoor balcony space; and the Glowpear Urban Garden makes indoor gardening a breeze!

This stand-alone planter has an ingenious self-watering design, so your plants can suck up water as they need it, without any leaks; and it’s pretty incredible how much you can grow in one Urban Garden! 

Bunches of flowers, handfuls of herbs and basket loads of vegetables are all possible, and although harvesting homegrown produce is always fun, the whole process of gardening in this way is beneficial for your young family.  

When you grow plants with your little one, you also grow connections, skills and a healthier outlook, and there are many ways to involve your child in indoor gardening, and educate them along the way. 

Here are six jobs that will spark their curiosity, hone their skills, and get things growing!  

1. Helping to select the plants 

Choosing which herbs, vegetables, fruits, flowers or ornamental plants you want to grow is exciting, and your child can help to select what goes in the soil.  

There are some kid-friendly plant ideas here, and giving your early learner a say is great for their self-confidence and continued interest in the garden.     

2. Planting seeds and seedlings 

Planting is a fun, hands-on activity that practises fine-motor skills and fosters discovery.  

As your child pokes seeds and unpots seedlings, they’ll learn how plants grow and the best way to place them in the soil. 

And because it takes time for leaves to develop and crops to ripen, your pre-schooler will learn important life skills, like patience, dedication and the rewards of nurturing, as they watch and wait. 

3. Filling the water reservoir 

The Urban Garden doesn’t need watering in the traditional way, so instead of splashing H2O all over the place, your child can be responsible for filling the Urban Garden’s water reservoir when it runs low (and the green button drops down).  

Monitoring the water level is a simple, yet important, job that will give your child a great sense of agency and put them in charge of the plants’ health and wellbeing. 

This feels good and does good, and pouring water into the reservoir has the added benefit of honing your child’s hand-eye coordination.  

4. Checking for pests and disease 

Although you won’t have fruit bats and locusts inside the house, unwelcome visitors can make a meal of an indoor garden, and pest patrol is a great job for your eagle-eyed (and possibly insect-obsessed) pre-schooler.  

You can teach your child how to inspect the plants for pests and signs of disease (like rust spots on the leaves), then work together to safely solve the problem.  

This task introduces your child to environmental awareness, while also teaching them how to responsibly care for your plants, so it’s a win-win. 

5. Cleaning the garden tools 

You won't need a shovel and rake to garden indoors, but your gardening gloves, watering jug, scissors and trowel will be put to good use, and your child can help to clean and tidy these tools once each gardening session is over.  

This teaches responsibility and organisation, and it will also help them to understand the importance of keeping tools clean for future gardening sessions.  

6. Harvesting produce 

This is definitely the highlight of any indoor gardening experience, and whether your preschooler has been picking mint leaves constantly, or hanging for the cherry tomatoes to ripen, being Chief Harvester is exciting!  

Your little one will be super keen to pick strawberries, pull radishes, cut basil and harvest any other kitchen-ready crops, and harvesting teaches your child the rewards of gardening.  

They’ll feel accomplishment and pride with that homegrown produce in their hand or on their plate, and growing an indoor garden will make you feel happy too! 

You'll find that gardening at home is positive for your headspace, diet and bond as a family, and, of course, outdoor gardening is amazing too.

Whatever you plant and wherever you grow, there are lots of reasons to garden as a young family, and we hope you can tap into all the benefits that come with putting things in the soil!