Gardening Gifts For Children
They say Christmas is all about the kids, and I have definitely felt the magic spark reignite with vigour since having Oscar. I have already shared my gift guide for gardeners, but I wanted to make sure the little ones in your lives were not overlooked either. There are so many brilliant reasons for getting outdoors all year round, but I know encouraging a toddler or older child might not be so easy. Here are some brilliant gifts that won’t break the bank this Christmas and are sure to entice your budding gardener out into the fresh air for some fun.
Firstly, I am in love with this Nature Walk Board, for £18, from What We Made Shop (also available on Etsy). This gorgeous wooden A4 board is guaranteed to make woodland walks or even the school run more entertaining and interactive for your children. You can let them collect whatever they find, or perhaps set them challenges to search for specific leaves or flowers or sticks to add to their board. It’s free to personalise and you can get 10% off your first order by subscribing to their mailing list, and free deliver on orders over £40.
I’ve bought this Pine Cone Bird Feeder Activity Set this year for £9, from My Little Habitat. It’s arrived beautifully packaged, ready to gift, and I’m excited to see the messy play and end result. I like that this is a gift that keeps on giving, it’s not just a onetime activity, but it will engage little ones to get outside, and keep looking out of the window in search for the hungry birds that it attracts. The set includes 100% natural elements, and like their whole range the aim is to bring more wildlife to the garden – could be perfectly pairs with a RSPB bird book to teach children about the birds that might come to visit.
A decent splash suit or puddle suit is a must have for any nature loving child. Oscar wears a couple of splashsuits from Muddy Puddles, one lined one for colder days, and a purely waterproof overall for forest school days. I love the designs and can vouch for the quality too. They have a range of all in ones for smaller children but also have a range of jackets, coats, waterproof trousers, wellies and swimwear too. You can get 20% through this link, and check out there clearance page for deals up to 50% off.
What’s the point of being outside if you aren’t looking for bugs? This Bug Hunting Kit from Little Green Fingers on Etsy is currently £16.50 and includes a magnifying box, activity sheets, and a caterpillar ornament to decorate. It’s one of the best value presents you can buy for a bug curious child this Christmas.
Speaking of bugs, why not get this Bug Hotel Building Kit from Sprinkles Of Nature, for just £7.50. You get a letterbox friendly package with seed paper hotel decorations, natural glue, bamboo sticks, straw and pegs so you are ready to get building right from the box. I can’t wait for Oscar to be a little bit older and see his creativity when it comes to scavenging for materials to build out a bug hotel empire one day!
No garden, no problem. You can still get your little one into gardening with this adorable Garden Of My Own play set for the windowsill. It is £11.95 from Smallkind, a small sustainable brand who looks after the planet over profits. There are four sections to the mini garden set on a plastic planting tray and it comes with a miniature watering can to keep your children involved as things start to grow. It is an excellent gift for practising fine motor skills too! You can easily add a seed selection of your choice and a little pack of soil to get them started. Get 10% off your first order when you sign up to their mailing list too.
I’m obsessed with anything personalised and this watering can and gardening tool set is perfect for the little gardener in your life. You can select the base colour and specify your personalisation for just £19 on Etsy, made by SWDesigns. By having their own set of tools your budding gardeners should keep their hands away from yours, and have a sense of control and responsibility over their little patch of garden as they dig away with this set.
This deluxe garden growing activity box from Healthy Family Shop, includes 5 packs of easy to grow seeds (flowers and vegetables) which won’t require you or your children to have any previous gardening experience. As a great place to start, the box comes with all the equipment and instructions you need so it becomes fun and education as your grow your own. Ordering directly includes free postage and a portion of your sale will go to the Trees For Cities charity.
Books always make great presents and there are so many out there about gardens, nature and animals that any child would love. For Oscar who is 18months now, I love the ‘Busy’ book range from Campbell Books, and they have one called Busy Grow, and one called Busy Garden which are both brilliant at just over £5 each! For children who are a little older The Works have a 10 book bundle about Outdoor World Adventures for £10 which would make a lovely addition to the bookshelf. I’ve also recently com across the “What to Look For” Ladybird book series by Elizabeth Jenner which is a beautiful range of books that go through the seasons taking a closer look at what children can find outside their door.
And last, but by no means least, for the older children I love the Hello Nature Activity Cards sold by Conscious Craft for £9.99 (you can get 10% off signing up to their newsletter). They come beautifully boxed with 30 children friendly activities to do including fun outdoor ideas like pond dipping, to educational cards to help your child learn more about nature.
