LITTLE SPROUTS SHARE THE JOYS OF GARDENING WITH YOUR CHILDREN AND WATCH THEIR APPRECIATION GROW.

Byline: JoAnn E.B. Yerem Correspondent

With spring in full swing and summer on the horizon, spending time in the garden is a natural for families.

My husband and I garden with our children regularly. Well, my husband tends to the plants; I chase the kids; and every now and again one of the boys gets a seed or a plant in the ground with chances of survival.

But we all seem to enjoy it. Hopefully, the boys are learning that with a little care, they can help something grow. Maybe my sons will develop even more than that - a love for gardening and the outdoors, interest in the natural sciences, respect for the world around us.

``From a young child learning his or her colors by looking at flower petals or the colors of vegetables, or developing motor skills by learning how to dig a hole with a small trowel, to older children beginning to make the connection of where our food comes from - a garden is like an outdoor classroom,'' said Lisa M. Beach, education specialist at the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden.

The arboretum has a Saturday morning club for kids ages 5 to 8, along with other programs that get children and their families into the garden.

According to the National Gardening Association, teachers and parents can use gardening to spark interest in living things, inspire science and cultural literacy, build children's confidence as problem solvers, promote teamwork and collaborative learning, and cultivate environmental responsibility.

``A lot of behavioral problems can disappear with kids when they are given a hands-on learning experience, which is what gardening provides. It gives them a chance to shine,'' said Charlie Nardozzi, chief gardening officer for the Hilton Garden Inn and senior horticulturist for the National Gardening Association. ``I've had teachers tell me the changes they see in a kid who has been given the responsibility of a plant and caring for it. They show a lot of pride in it.''

Hilton Garden Inns and the National Gardening Association have teamed with schools across the nation to provide curriculum and materials needed for gardening programs that teach math, science, history and more.

``You can garden with your children even as little toddlers. The thing to do when they are 2, 3, 4 years old is to make it really fun. Even if it is just finding a dandelion and blowing, or finding a Johnny-Jump-Up or a pansy and letting them taste it. You don't want to make it a job or chore. I think we have all had that experience - it's a sure way to turn kids off,'' Nardozzi said.

Jim Folsom, botanical director at the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, says it is important for children to explore the natural world.

A new children's garden will be opening at the Huntington on June 19 with exploratory, investigational aspects to it.

``One thing that is happening to children is that having a real-time experience is becoming rarer. So much is being mopped up for us, being delivered on a plate, photographed or becoming virtual,'' Folsom said.

``It is crucial for children to interact with the outdoors, get filthy dirty, a little bit wet and get dirt under their fingernails,'' he added. ``Humans are meant to interact with the natural elements. The more we isolate it from ourselves, the poorer we are.''

Isolation isn't a problem with my sons. They love dirt. They play in it, dig in it and roll in it. The younger one even likes to eat it.

But how do you get kids to actually garden, not just eat dirt?

``Let them explore while you are working with them in the garden,'' Beach suggested. ``The more they have fun discovering and the less they feel like they are working, the longer they will remain interested.

``Parents should expect that it may take time for children to grasp the idea that they are 'gardeners.' In the beginning they are explorers, which is what they should be. Be patient, and in time your child will, hopefully, understand that as gardeners they are caretakers. Their plants depend on them, just like their pets do.''

Most experts recommend giving your child his or her own space to garden - part of the yard, a container or a portion of a raised bed.

``Start out small - kid-size,'' Beach said. ``A large garden can be overwhelming. Give them their own space. A child will develop a sense of ownership in a small plot of land or a little container of their own.''

Folsom's first tip for parents is to give up any desire to control what the child's space will look like.

``Your child won't have the same aesthetic values as you. You are going to have to let them do it themselves,'' he said. ``The magic of plants is to watch a seed sprout. Let a child grow something and be responsible for something.''

Folsom also suggests using plants that produce something other than background color - vegetables, herbs or plants that bring in wildlife such as butterflies.

``To grow things that actually yield a product and are beautiful is kind of fun,'' he said.

Growing vegetables brings with it the bonus that your children might actually eat what they grow.

``Not only does gardening get (children) outside and exercising, but they are learning to grow their own fruits and vegetables and know the value of that,'' Nardozzi said. ``A lot of children don't know that tomatoes are not just from a can and peas are not just in a bag in the freezer.

``Gardening gets kids excited about eating fresh fruits and vegetables.''

But even if you can't get your child to eat the vegetables, the experience will be worth it. Just ask Folsom.

``Like so many things, it boils down to people. Half the value of gardening is doing something with your child.''

Planting the seed

--Start small. A garden in its entirety can be overwhelming for children.

--Give a child his or her own piece of land or container to plant.

--Don't try to control what or how a child plants. Children will have a greater sense of ownership and responsibility if they have control over the planting.

--Make it fun. Don't make gardening feel like a chore.

--Start at least a few plants from seeds. It's a different learning experience.

--For your first seeds, start with something that grows quickly, like radishes.

--Try planting vegetables or fruits your child eats.

--Garden together.

For more information on gardening with children, try these Web sites:

--www.kidsgardening.com

--www.arboretum.org

--www.huntington.org

Starting out

For an easy project kids can do at home, build a terrarium, suggests Lisa M. Beach, education specialist at the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden:

You will need two clear plastic cups, clear packing tape, moist potting soil, fish tank pebbles, and a leaf cutting from a small peperomia houseplant.

Fill the bottom of one cup with pebbles to give the plant drainage, then cover the pebbles with soil to the top of the cup. Place the peperomia cutting, stem-down, into the soil.

Lastly, invert the second cup over the first one and seal shut with the clear packing tape. You have just created a mini terrarium. Watch as your plant grows new leaves and fills the container.

- JoAnn E.B. Yerem

CAPTION(S):

7 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) ON THE COVER: Jack, left, and Neil Yerem prepare to get down and dirty.

(2 -- color) Dean Yerem, above, spends time gardening in the back yard with sons Neil, 16 months, and Jack, 4, at their home in Canyon Country.

(3 -- 4 -- color) no caption (children gardening)

(5 -- color) Gardening can help a child develop his or her motor skills as well as cultivate a sense of responsibility. Says Lisa M. Beach of the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden, ``Be patient, and in time your child will, hopefully, understand that as gardeners they are caretakers. Their plants depend on them, just like their pets do.''

(6 -- 7 -- color) Even the youngest child can benefit from exploring the world of gardening, experts say, as it teaches collaboration, above, and provides a visceral, hands-on activity that instills respect for the natural world, top.

John Lazar/Staff Photographer

Box:

(1) Planting the seed (see text)

(2) Starting out (see text)