7 child-friendly plants that are fun and easy – plus expert tips on how to grow them successfully

Getting children to engage with gardening can sometimes be tricky. They often have other interests that steer their attention away from plants and growing. Knowing which plants to grow with them, however, can make all the difference. There's an endless number of fun, quirky, and delicious child-friendly plants that are sure to capture the attention of young minds.

On the other end of the spectrum, you might actually have children or grandchildren who are showing lots of interest in growing plants, but you aren't sure where to get started with gardening with children. Whether the children in your life are keen to create a kitchen garden or just enjoy bright, vibrant florals, there are so many backyard ideas for kids and child-friendly plants to explore.

Here, gardening experts share their favorite plants to grow with children, along with advice on how to grow each of them successfully.

7 plants to grow with children

No matter what gardening interest the child in your life has, it's important to watch out for poisonous plants and those that can cause them harm. Likewise, make sure to choose child-friendly plants that will grow well in your US hardiness zone to ensure growing success.

With that being said, here are some of the most fun and easy plants to grow with children, recommended by gardening experts.

1. Sunflowers

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 2 to zone 11
• Best for: Towering height

It's no surprise that sunflowers are at the top of the list of child-friendly plants. Growing sunflowers from seed (with these sunflower seeds from Amazon) is incredibly easy. Plus, you end up with a bright, sunny blooms guaranteed to bring joy to you and your children alike.

'If you're looking for fast-growing flowers to grow from seed, sunflowers are what you need,' says gardening expert and garden designer Laura Janney. 'There are so many varieties to choose from. Shorter varieties work well in pots, but nothing is more exciting for a child than a tall, towering sunflower!' she adds.

These plants need a sunny spot and should be watered well to encourage longer blooms. Don't forget to harvest sunflower seeds with your children at the end of the flowering season, ready to plant them again next year.

Laura Janney

Laura is the Founder and Owner of The Inspired Garden. A winner of the 2024 Houzz Design award, Laura has over 20 years of experience in gardening and working with clients designing beautiful gardens. With multiple courses under her belt, Laura would make a great resource on all things gardening.

2. Mint

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 3 to zone 11
• Best for: Unusual flavor

There are many reasons to grow aromatic herbs in your yard - the most obvious being they smell delicious, but also because you can harness fragrance in the yard for wellbeing for you and you children. This includes, reducing stress and improving concentration.

'With its array of varieties and flavors, mint is a vigorous grower and can thrive even in partial sun,' says Laura. 'It comes in so many fun scents and kids especially get excited with the chocolate variety,' she adds.

There are so many wonderful unusual mint varieties to explore, including chocolate mint (seeds from Amazon), which Laura notes, and lemon mint (seeds from Amazon).

Growing mint is also incredibly quick, so it won't be long until your children are harvesting mint to smell and eat.

3. Cosmos

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 2 to zone 11
• Best for: Fun petals

With so many types of cosmos to choose from, it's no wonder these colorful flowers are popular with children. Blooming in summer, these are also perfect cutting garden flowers, so children can show off their homegrown florals in a vase, too.

'Children will also love the dreaminess of their wispy foliage,' Laura notes. 'Not only are the blooms sweet, but they make excellent pressed flowers for crafts,' she adds.

To grow cosmos, try sowing seeds indoors so your children can find joy in watching the first shoots appear. You can use this seed starter tray from Amazon on a sunny, warm windowsill.

Try cosmos 'Double Click Bicolor Violet' (seeds from Burpee) - a beautiful, ruffled variety that will charm young gardeners. Or, cosmos 'Candystripe' (seeds from Amazon), which has unique striped petals.

4. Sugar snap peas

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 2 to zone 11
• Best for: Picking off the vine

Looking for the easiest vegetables to grow with children? Try sugar snap peas. They're popular with children for their sweet taste, but will also fascinate them with their growing habit.

'Grow sugar snap peas by planting directly into the soil in early spring. They grow in a vertical garden form, making them a great space-saving option,' says master gardener Adam Weiss. 'Children can harvest sugar snap peas fresh off the vine and enjoy their sweet, crunchy taste,' he adds.

You can turn this into a bigger garden project with your children by setting up a trellis to train your sugar snap peas and turn it into a garden feature. You can even use this arch trellis from Amazon to make an edible walkway for your children to use.

Find sugar snap peas to grow from Burpee.

Adam Weiss

Master gardener and owner of Pike Lane Gardens. Adam is truly passionate about vegetable gardening! He has created a wellness & sustainability brand for forward-thinking companies and teaches online and in-person workshops to brands around the country.

5. Marigolds

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 2 to zone 11
• Best for: Multipurpose blooms

If your children are attracted to bright, showy blooms, you need to grow marigolds with them - with these marigold seeds from Burpee. They're also long-flowering, blooming from spring to fall, so your children can enjoy their hard flower-growing work for many months at a time.

'Bright and cheerful, marigolds are very hardy. If you plant them in late spring, you’ll have them up until the first frost,' Laura says. 'One fun use of them for children is taking the flower head and coloring paper with it,' she adds.

Many choose to use marigolds as a natural dye, so children can make use of them towards the end of the flowering period by removing the flowerheads for a coloring material.

Not only this, but marigolds are one of the best pest-repellent plants, thanks to the scent they give off and chemicals they release. This is an opportunity to educate children through plants, showing them just how clever flowers can be as a natural defence to creepy crawlies that may cause harm to plants.

Why not try combining them with the vegetables you grow with your children by planting marigolds in a vegetable garden to keep pests away?

6. Cherry tomatoes

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 2 to zone 11
• Best for: Juicy, healthy crops

Tomatoes are a great crop to grow with children for a number of reasons - they're easy to grow, look beautiful on the vine, and they're delicious to add to salads for your children to have a nutritional, homegrown meal. In particular, experts recommend growing cherry tomatoes with children - you can find cherry tomato seeds on Amazon.

'Introducing sweet tomatoes into our children’s diet has so many benefits. When my daughter was eight, I told her cherry tomatoes tasted like candy - she couldn't get enough!' Adam says.

'When kids plant a tiny seed, care for it, and watch it grow to maturity, they become excited to eat what they’ve grown,' adds gardening expert Sara Rubens. 'At the start of the growing season, it’s fun to create a list of easy-to-grow fruits and vegetables and let each child choose one or two to plant and care for. This gives them a sense of ownership and responsibility in the garden,' she suggests.

You can grow tomatoes indoors, in a greenhouse, or in the yard. Plant tomato seeds in spring before transplanting tomato seedlings when temperatures reach 70°F.

Take care to avoid tomato growing mistakes that may hinder the success of growing cherry tomatoes with children.

Sara Rubens

Sara Rubens is the founder of Seed to Sanctuary, a garden design company based in North Carolina that specializes in creating year-round food sanctuaries. After transitioning from a corporate career, Sara developed a passion for gardening during the pandemic and saw the need for personalized, hands-on coaching.

7. Zinnias

• Hardiness: US hardiness zone 2 to zone 11
• Best for: Vibrant flowers

Another of the best annuals to grow with children, zinnias are some of the most joyful, vibrant flowers to have in your yard all through summer. They have showy, large flowerheads that come in a range of colors, from orange, to pink, and yellow to capture the fascination of little people.

'Coming in a rainbow of colors, these heat-loving flowers grow the more you cut them,' says Laura Janney.

These cut-and-come-again flowers can be enjoyed over and over in one season, as Laura notes. For this reason, make sure you have essential pruning tools to hand to cut them and display in the home - like these pruning shears from Amazon.

'You can grow zinnias from seed quite easily. They prefer a pool soil condition,' says Laura. This makes it a good choice for those with a poorer soil type that isn't very rich in nutrients, although you will keep zinnias blooming by growing them in well-draining soil.

Find zinnia seeds on Amazon.

FAQs

Which houseplants are best for children?

There are so many child-friendly houseplants to choose from. Many indoor succulents have weird and wonderful shapes for children to observe, as well as textures to feel. They're also easy to care for, so your child can take ownership over caring for their very own succulent. Likewise, carnivorous plants are popular with children. Young curious minds can watch as the Venus flytrap captures flies and observe the unique shapes of pitcher plants, for example.

Growing child-friendly plants is just one way to engage little ones with the backyard. Try creating a sensory garden for your children to explore or incorporate a backyard playground idea in your yard to make some space for play alongside planting.