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Animal Gardens

© Linda Mazar

Second in a Series of Themes for Children's Gardens

This is the second part of my series on themes for children's gardens. Children love having their own garden and they can further personalize it with a theme that appeals to them and a few accessories that make the theme more evident and fun. Kids love animals, so what could be more natural than to have their own "animal" theme garden?

We aren't really growing animals, but growing plants and flowers that have an animal name as part of their name. There are many subthemes (or animal groups) to choose from and one is sure to spark your child's interest. Using easily read plant labels and placing a homemade sign in the garden bed proclaiming "Beth's Kitty Garden" or "Billy's Wild Animal Garden", etc. explains the bed to passers-by and helps your child take pride in his/her own garden. Having accessories that your child can play with in the garden or that the child has made, will increase his/her interest in and interaction with the garden as well.

Wild Animals Garden - Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My! What a fun garden this could be. I can envision this one with a large plastic, resin, or ceramic "wild" animals scattered throughout the bed for the child to play with amongst the plants. Or maybe your child will make some of clay and dry and paint them. The plants could be planted in rings like a circus or maybe semicircles. Plant ideas might include: Tiger Lilies, Elephant Ears, Leopard's Bane (Doronicum Cordatum), Turtlehead, Tiger Roses, Baby Bear Pumpkins, False Dragonhead (Physostegia), Pheasant-Eye Narcissus, Leopard Lily (Belacanda Chinensis), Snapdragons, Monkey Flower (Mimulus hybridus), Tiger Eyes Marigold, Zebrina Malva and any other plants you come across with a wild animal in the name.

Farm Animals Garden - Old MacDonald Had a Farm and there were a lot of plants there too. This could be a great garden to scatter a few toy farm animals throughout, farm-themed ornaments (were you wondering where to put that cow yard sign that Aunty Emmy gave you?), or maybe a few little tractors, etc. Ideas for this theme might be: Goat's Beard (Aruncus), Gooseneck Loosestrife, Cowslip, Lamb's Ear, Hens and Chicks, Wormwood, Toad Lily, Foxtail Lily, Cockscomb, Fleece Flower, Oxe-Eye Daisy, Turtle Head, Pig Weed, Chick's Weed, Hen and Chicks Poppies, Scottish Harebell Campanula, White Swan Echinacea, Hare's Tail Grass, Oxheart Tomatoes, and any other plants you come across with a farm animal name.

The copyright of the article Animal Gardens in Gardening with Children is owned by Linda Mazar. Permission to republish Animal Gardens in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.