Growing fruit and vegetables from seed is a wonderful activity to do with children. Easy-to-grow seeds like cress provide quick, confidence-boosting results, while slower-growing veg like pumpkins give kids a huge sense of pride and satisfaction. Here, experienced allotment grower Lee Senior shares practical tips on the best vegetables to grow with kids.
Browse our full range of ‘fun to grow seeds’ for kids here.
Which child-friendly vegetables should I start with?
Here’s a quick list of my favourite vegetables to get children interested in growing. From toddlers to teens, these colourful, easy-to-grow varieties are a great place to start. If you like the sound of them, I’ve included some practical growing tips for each vegetable below.
- Cress seeds: The ideal introduction for young children, cress seeds germinate and grow super quickly on a warm windowsill. Even without any soil, you can germinate them on damp kitchen towels or cotton wool to make ‘cress heads’.
- Carrot seeds: Carrots are one of the most colourful foods that come out of the ground! Available in cream, yellow, orange, red, purple and black, these crunchy roots are a good addition to lunch boxes.
- Pea seeds: Prising open the long pods to reveal the perfect little peas inside is fascinating to children! Try eating them raw for a sweet and crunchy treat.
- Pumpkin seeds: Growing and carving pumpkins for Halloween has captivated children for generations. Both the flesh and roasted seeds are delicious.
- Squash ‘Pasta Plant’: Many children love pasta, so growing squashes that have tendrils of flesh resembling spaghetti is a fun way to engage them.
- Tomato seeds: Available in many different shapes, sizes and colours, even adults are fascinated by stripey tomato varieties! The strongly-scented foliage is interesting, and kids love being able to eat sun-ripened, juicy, cherry tomatoes straight from the vine.
1. How to sow cress seeds with kids
Kids enjoy snipping their cress to add to sandwiches
Image: Cress ‘Cress Heads’ (Curled) seeds from Suttons ‘Fun to Grow’ range
When to sow: Cress seeds can be sown all year round on a bright windowsill. Germination takes 1-2 days in gentle heat if the seeds are kept damp.
When to plant out: Cress grows to maturity in the seed tray (or on the damp kitchen paper) where it’s sown. Apart from good light and moisture, it doesn’t need anything else, and can be harvested with scissors!
Estimated time from sowing to harvesting: 7-10 days.
2. How to sow carrot seeds with kids
These little round carrots are quick easy to grow
Image: Carrot ‘Bowling Carrots (Rondo)’ seeds from Suttons ‘Fun to Grow’ range
When to sow: Carrots are best sown directly outside from mid-April through to July when the soil has reached a minimum temperature of 12C. Sow the seed thinly into shallow seed drills, making sure the soil isn’t stony or compacted and hasn’t had any manure added within the last 12 months.
When to plant out: Carrots should be sown in situ and left to grow on to maturity. The rows of seedlings may need thinning to allow spacings of roughly 7cm between each plant. The tasty, smaller thinnings can be used in stir fries or lightly steamed.
Estimated time from sowing to harvesting: Baby carrots take around 8 weeks. Larger summer carrots take about 12-14 weeks.
3. How to sow pea seeds with kids
Reaching just 25cm tall, this pea can be grown in containers or on a sunny windowsill
Image: Pea ‘Mini Muncher (Tom Thumb)’ seeds from Suttons ‘Fun to Grow’ range
When to sow: Maincrop pea varieties should be sown in a cold greenhouse from mid-March to mid-April. But if you wait until the weather warms up, you can sow the seeds directly outside into straight drills from mid-April through to late May. Mice enjoy eating newly sown pea seeds, so do keep a lookout for them!
When to plant out: If you started your peas in a cold greenhouse during early spring, they can be hardened off and planted outdoors from late April.
Estimated time from sowing to harvesting: Spring-sown maincrop peas take approximately 90-100 days, depending on growing conditions.
4. How to sow pumpkin seeds with kids
With rich orange flesh, this pumpkin is ideal for eating and carving
Image: Pumpkin ‘Crafty Pumpkin (Hundredweight)’ seeds from Suttons ‘Fun to Grow’ range
When to sow: Pumpkins are a warm weather crop that don’t like cold winds or frost, so it’s best not to sow the seeds too early. Wait until the end of March or early April, and start the seeds on a sunny windowsill or greenhouse where they’re protected from frost. Sow one seed per small pot of compost, or try several seeds in a larger pot. A minimum temperature of 15C is required for germination. (Germination isn’t reliable from direct outdoor sowings.)
When to plant out: Start hardening off your seedlings for 2-3 weeks at the beginning of May. Then, provided all risk of frost has passed, you can plant them out in a sunny location from the last week of May.
Estimated time from sowing to harvesting: Pumpkins grow quickly over the summer once established. They take 120-150 days to develop into a good size, and then another 30-40 days to mature, ready to carve or use in cooking.
5. How to sow squash seeds with kids
Cut the squash in half to scoop out the tendrils of ‘spaghetti’ flesh
Image: Squash ‘Pasta Plant (Vegetable Spaghetti)’ seeds from Suttons ‘Fun to Grow’ range
When to sow: Both winter and summer squash require very similar growing conditions to pumpkins and won’t tolerate cold or frost. Sow one seed into a small pot of compost in April. Keep the pots on a sunny windowsill or in a greenhouse. You’ll need a minimum temperature of 15C for good germination.
When to plant out: Harden the plants off during early May and plant outdoors towards the end of May. Choose a sheltered, warm location.
Estimated time from sowing to harvesting: The typical growing period is about 120 days.
6. How to sow tomato seeds with kids
These bushy little cherry tomato plants can be grown on windowsills, in containers or in hanging baskets
Image: Tomato ‘Table Top Tomato (Determinate)’ seeds from Suttons ‘Fun to Grow’ range
When to sow: Start your tomato seeds in March or April on a warm windowsill. The seeds can be sown in seed trays or pots, and then transplanted when the first true leaves appear. Avoid letting the night time temperature drop below 10C if possible, as this can check their growth.
When to plant out: Tomatoes are best grown in a greenhouse in the UK but if you have a sunny, sheltered, south-facing position, they can be grown outside. Bush varieties also grow well in a conservatory. If you’re short on space, some cherry tomato varieties can be grown in hanging baskets.
Estimated time from sowing to harvesting: Smaller cherry types of tomatoes are ready to eat in around 90 days. Larger salad tomatoes take around 120 days.
We hope we’ve inspired you to try sowing and growing vegetables with children. Find more of Lee’s practical, hands-on, vegetable growing advice over at his monthly allotment pages. You can also follow Lee on his Instagram page: @lee_senior_gardening.
Lead image: shutterstock
