5 ideas for a child friendly garden

If you feel grateful for having a lovely outdoor space and garden, you can be 100% positive that your kids will benefit from this amazing space even more. You’ll want to ensure your garden is child friendly to make it the safest and most fun it can be.

Spending time in the open, breathing fresh air, getting much-needed physical activity, and simply experiencing the world around them is crucial for healthy childhood development, and all this can be achieved in the safety and comfort of your own home.

All you have to do is make sure that your garden is both inspiring and kid-friendly. We’ve pulled together our top 5 ideas for how to make your garden both fun, and child-friendly.

1. Get Rid of Weeds and Dangerous Plants

The first thing you ought to do in order to create a kid-friendly garden is to get rid of all the rubbish and gardening tools that present a potential hazard for your little ones. Collect these and put them away in a locked shed.

Once you’re satisfied with the clean-up, it’s time to prune the trees and hedges, as well as mow the lawn and remove any weeds or toxic plants. You never know what your child might touch and then rub their eyes, nose, and mouth. Very young children are particularly prone to putting things in their mouths, so there’s no room for unsafe plants in your garden.

Furthermore, mowing the lawn will make the grass more comfortable for the child’s sensitive skin. Not to mention, neatly cut grass looks aesthetically pleasing.

2. Experiment with Garden Paths, Patios and Decking

If you have flower beds or a vegetable patch in your garden, you probably don’t want your children stepping all over the flowers, vegetables, and herbs that are growing there. In that respect, creating a nice garden path to mark the area around the flowerbed or vegetable patch is a great way to have your kids play around without getting stuck in the dirt or scratching themselves.

Stepping stones also make a fun addition to your garden or path, allowing kids to hop between them. You might also want to consider making a small separate wildflower patch or vegetable patch for green fingered children to help with.

A great thing about a garden path is that it could lead to your patio or deck. This could be a spot in a pleasant shaded area where you can all relax together as a family.

What’s more, a patio or deck can quickly turn into a play area where children can play with their favourite toys when they get tired of running around, or if the sun is too strong. Natural stone is a great choice when it comes to creating an elegant path, a patio, decorations, or even furniture. If opting for decking, be sure to sand it all down properly to prevent little feet (and big ones!) getting splinters.

3. Utilise the Garden Fence

When it comes to a child-friendly garden, you want to make sure that your fence is smooth – you don’t want anybody getting splinters. Once you’re done with sanding and securing your fence, it’s time for the true fun to start.

Garden fences can turn into creative canvases for kids. If your child enjoys painting, you can provide them with paint cans and brushes alongside the fence, so that they can explore their artistic nature that way.

On the other hand, if your child prefers writing and chalk, painting the fence with chalkboard paint will definitely make your kids happy and excited. Don’t forget to get lots of chalk in all the colours of the rainbow!

If the idea of a multi-coloured fence makes you want to hide, don’t worry! Lots of children are more than happy with a bucket of water and a paint brush, so they can still be artistic but with a short-lasting effect.

4. Create a Special Den for Kids

All kids love to have a place they can call their own. And in your kid-friendly garden transformation, you’ll have several different options to give your children exactly that.

For starters, you can’t go wrong with a treehouse. Of course, this is only possible if you have an adequate tree in your garden. If not, a playhouse is always another great option.

If you’re very crafty and handy, you might even enjoy the task of building your own  “house” for the kids, made from wooden boards. Again, make sure that the wood is smooth, for splinter-free play.

Even if it’s not possible to make a treehouse, or build a playhouse, you can still experiment with other options. For example, it’s possible to use a tent and decorate it with colourful throws and blankets in order to create a true den for your kids. If you want, you could also buy or make a teepee.

Remember, even a plain throw as a makeshift roof with a mat for the floor decorated with fairy lights can look magical to your kids if you don’t have a lot of space to work with.

5. Bring on the Fun!

Finally, it’s important that you put some effort into providing your kids with lots of different activities that they can safely engage in in the garden. Of course, address your child’s likes and interests when choosing these activities.

For instance, a sand pit with a bucket and spade is something many kids tend to enjoy greatly. There are lots of fun designs to choose from, for example a pirate ship sand pit or a bus sand pit. A DIY slip and slide with tarpaulin and a garden hose can also turn into wonderful entertainment during the warmer months.

Let’s not forget about physical activity! You can always have basic sports equipment on your patio area, such as a football or basketball, but it’s also possible to shake things up a bit and make your garden even more exciting.

Why not try making your own glow in the dark bowling kit by placing glow sticks into plastic water bottles? If your budget and garden size allows it, you can also designate an area for a multi-level playground, with pallets, tyres, slides, and so on.

Fun fairy lights and colourful kid-friendly décor will complete the look of your child-friendly garden. Thanks to the above-mentioned ideas, your kids can make the most out of the outdoors and their imaginative minds all day, every day.

About the author of this guest blog
I’m Rebecca, a translator and avid traveller, a book worm and horror flick enthusiast. My job has given me the amazing opportunity to travel to dozens of countries around the world, and writing on Rough Draft gives me a chance to try to showcase some of them.