Storybook Garden Ideas for Your Kids!
Storybook Gardens: The Cutest New Idea for Kids’ Gardens
Encourage the love of reading and gardening with your favorite little people by pairing perfect books with great outdoor adventures! It’s easy to design and plant a creative play space based on beloved children’s storybooks. From how-to books for the preschool set to stories about naughty—but adored—animals to mysterious magical creatures and enchanting herbs, you and your kids will love turning favorite stories into fabulous outdoor play spaces.
“Creating a storybook garden can be as simple as designing a garden around the plants in one of your favorite storybooks,” says Em Shipman, mom, gardener, and executive director of KidsGardening.org. “At my house, we love the book Priscilla and the Hollyhocks. Read this book with the kids in your life then go out and plant a hollyhock garden. Trim the flowers to make hollyhock dolls and talk about the importance of seed saving and touchstones.”
Most importantly, make sure to involve your kids. Read a variety of storybooks with them and allow them to choose their favorite one to bring to life in your backyard.
To get you started, here are a few favorite storybooks that make a perfect foundation for hours of outdoor fun.
Peter Rabbit Garden
“First, he ate some lettuces and some French beans; and then he ate some radishes; and then, feeling rather sick, he went to look for some parsley.”
~Beatrix Potter, The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Naughty Peter! Why must he always cause trouble? Eating Mr. McGregor’s vegetables, being chased through the garden, and hiding in a watering can, where he catches a cold…and losing his little blue jacket. Poor Peter had a no good, very bad day!
Photo and caption: Peter Rabbit Garden, photo credit: South Carolina Botanical Garden
“I love sharing gardening with children and most frequently do that through our Garden Sprouts Program for children aged 3 to 5,” says Sue Watts, Educational Program Coordinator for the South Carolina Botanical Garden. “Peter Rabbit is such a mischievous character I think children really connect with him quickly, and his story is so full of drama and suspense that it captures their attention. We have grown peas, radishes, and carrots (and much more) with children in our Peter Rabbit Garden. When children plant the seeds and nurture the plants, they are very excited to try the vegetables they have grown! They love being outside and gardening is such an excellent way to introduce children to the natural world!”
Your little Peter Rabbit lovers will adore creating the adventures of that naughty little bunny with their very own Peter Rabbit Garden. For an authentic garden based on the book, use your imagination and crafting skills: it doesn’t need to be an expensive endeavor. Let kids help pick out items to upcycle for the Peter Rabbit garden to give them ownership of the project.
What You’ll Need for this Storybook Garden:
Décor Items
- Upcycled garden gate/fence (as Peter squeezes under the gate, then can’t find his way out again)
- Wheelbarrow (where Peter peeks at Mr. McGregor)
- Watering can (where Peter hides)
- Rake (used by Mr. McGregor)
- Shed (where Peter hides—it’s also a great place to read all of Beatrix Potter’s books)
- Trellis for cucumbers (mentioned in the book)
- Blue jacket with brass buttons (which Peter abandons when it gets caught in bird netting on the black currant bushes)
- Two shoes (one lost amongst the cabbages, and one lost by the potatoes)
- Teacup and teaspoon (for the dose of chamomile tea Mrs. Rabbit gives Peter when he’s safely home in bed)
Plants
- Lettuce
- Radishes
- French beans
- Parsley
- Cabbages
- Peas
- Cucumbers
- Potatoes
- Onions
- Gooseberry bush
- Black currant bush
As the garden grows and veggies are ready to harvest, let the kids taste them just as Peter did—straight from the garden. (Give them a good rinse with water, and lettuce, parsley, beans, peas, cucumbers, and radishes are snack-ready!)
Planting a Rainbow
“Every year, Mom and I plant a rainbow. In the fall, we buy some bulbs and plant them in the ground…”
~ Lois Ehlert, Planting a Rainbow
The sweet children’s book helps kids understand how to plant bulbs, seeds, and seedlings and nurture their growth. Not only is planting a rainbow fun for kids, the book also introduces them to garden terms like bulb, corm, tuber, rhizome, and seedlings, giving them an early introduction to the different ways plants grow. Planting a rainbow garden is an especially good project for kids learning colors. Look through catalogs to pick out bulbs, seeds, or plants to reinforce color recognition, as well as the many subtle shades for each color.
What You’ll Need for this Storybook Garden:
Items
- Sunny garden space with rich, well-draining soil
- Water source
- Shovel
The plants used in Planting the Rainbow are listed to the right, but choose whatever flowers you and your kids like best for your rainbow garden. It’s terrific to have flowers blooming from spring until fall but try to select some plants that bloom at the same time so the kids can harvest the flowers for a bouquet that features the entire rainbow.
Plants
Red: Tulip, Rose, Carnation
Orange: Zinnia, Tulip, Poppy, Tiger Lily
Yellow: Marigold, Daisy, Daffodils
Green: Ferns, Hostas
Blue: Morning Glory, Cornflower,
Indigo: Delphinium, Hyacinth
Violet: Crocus, Phlox, Iris, Violet, Aster, Pansy
Photo: Cheekwood Children’s Garden; Photo Credit: Cheekwood Estates & Gardens
“Literacy runs throughout our programming for children at Cheekwood, as a love of nature and a love of learning go hand in hand,” says Nathalie Lavine, Vice President of Education and Outreach at Cheekwood, part of the American Public Gardens Association. “Exploration and curiosity give way to a desire to soak up knowledge. Storytime for our youngest guests, with suggested books for further reading, and questions to help adults engage with their little ones, are just the beginning of connecting nature and literacy. There are so many beautiful books with page after page of inspiration for children of all ages.”
Growing Vegetable Soup
“Dad says we are going to grow vegetable soup…”
~Lois Ehlert, Growing Vegetable Soup
If you’re looking for the perfect way to encourage a love of reading and gardening—while also getting the kids to eat their veggies–planting a garden based on the book Growing Vegetable Soup is a great way to accomplish your goals. To follow the story in your own garden, collect the tools, seeds, and plants you’ll need, but let kids pick out their favorite varieties and garden décor. With the “Year of the Garden Bean,” kids can find many fun varieties with interesting names, like ‘Dragon’s Tongue’ or ‘Rattlesnake’ pole beans. Let them dare each other to eat a ‘Dragon’s Tongue!
What You’ll Need for this Storybook Garden:
Items
- Sunny garden space with rich, well-draining soil
- Water source
Plants
From seeds: Green Beans, Peas, Corn, Zucchini, Carrots
From “Sprouts” (i.e. transplants): Tomatoes, Seed Potatoes, Onion Starts, Broccoli, Peppers, Cabbage
To grow veggies successfully, make sure they’re planted in full sun (6 to 8 hours a day). They’ll need about an inch of water each week, so if rain is scarce, encourage the kids (with a little adult supervision) to water the plants with a hose and wand, directing the spray to the base of the plants so the roots absorb the water. Remind the kids that overhead watering can encourage diseases to grow on the plants, plus it wastes water. Check the soil to see when it’s time to water. Stick a finger about an inch into the soil. If it’s moist, no need to water. If it’s dry, time to give the veggies a drink!
Talk to the kids about how to know when to harvest the veggies and fruit, and then show them the best ways to pick their crops for vegetable soup. Some plants, like tomatoes and peas, are easy to harvest by hand, while others, like peppers, need to be snipped from the plant to avoid breaking fragile stems.
Once you’ve harvested your veggies, it’s time to make vegetable soup! Read the book again with your garden crew, pick your favorite soup recipe, show them how to use a knife safely, and let the dicing begin! Your sous-chefs will love creating a true seed-to-garden-to-table meal they grew themselves. Watch them beam with pride when they serve their homegrown veggie soup to the family.
Harry Potter Garden
“ ‘Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative,’ said Hermione, sounding as usual as though she had swallowed the textbook. ‘It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state.’ ”
~ J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Who can forget the ear-splitting shriek of Professor Sprout repotting Mandrake in Herbology class? (Certainly not Neville, who fainted.) For lovers of all things magical, the Harry Potter book series provides a fantastical introduction to gardening—although you won’t find most of these magical (not real) plants mentioned by J.K. Rowling in your local garden center. Instead, conjure your creative skills and involve your kids in making your own version of Professor Sprout’s Herbology class by exploring catalogs and nurseries for unique, slightly wicked-looking plants—and then adding appropriate Hogwarts signage to explain their magical uses.
To get you started, here are a few favorite magical plants:
- Mandrake Root: When pulled from the ground, it shrieks in pain. Can madden, deafen, or kill an unprotected human.
- Puffapod: Fat pink pods with seeds that burst into flower if dropped.
- Devil’s Snare: Used as protection against the theft of the Sorcerer’s Stone. Must relax to be released from its vines, as Harry and Ron learned from Hermione.
- Gillyweed: Slimy, grayish-green plant that looks like rats’ tails. When eaten, causes the user to grow gills, webbed feet, and webbing between fingers. The effects last about an hour. Excellent for Tri-Wizard Tournaments.
- Fluxweed: Harvest at full moon to use in Polyjuice Potion.
- Wolfsbane: Used by Professor Lupin to keep his canine tendencies at bay. Known to repel werewolves. (FYI: Wolfsbane is a real plant known as Aconitum)
The secret to a Harry Potter garden is in the details. Add descriptive signage to your odd-looking plants. Create an “Herbology” potting bench. Find gargoyle statuary on sale to add a magical, creepy vibe. Plant a pumpkin patch for Buckbeak the Hippogriff near an old playhouse that can be repurposed into Hagrid’s Hut. Turn over a broken terracotta pot to make a home for Trevor, Neville’s toad. Add a few wands, a Sorting Hat, and let the kids’ imaginations run wild! Truly, the creative garden opportunities are endless. Let your Harry Potter-loving kids take the lead to make it their own magical escape. They’ll pass their gardening O.W.L.S. with the highest marks and create magic in your backyard.
“This post about Storybook Gardens is provided as an educational/inspirational service of the National Garden Bureau and our members. Please credit and link to National Garden Bureau and author member when using all or parts of this article.”
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