Author, journalist and broadcaster Helen Cross’s, first book Grow Cook Inspire, which celebrates its 3rd birthday this month, was written during covid. With three children under the age of 5, a husband working as a NHS doctor the garden became her lifeline. Having grown up on a farm on the southwest coast of Scotland that upbringing and understanding of where her food came from has quietly shaped her values. She became motivated to educate children about how to garden and grow their own, recognising a growing disconnect with the natural world around us. A passionate school gardening champion Helen shares with us why now more than ever, 5 years on from lockdown, we must continue that mission both at home and in the classroom.
Want to know more? Join Helen at Jekka's May Herb Days - Tickets available online.
Gardening with Children
As a mother of three, I’ve learnt that the most valuable lessons aren’t always taught in classrooms or found in textbooks or indeed on screens. Sometimes, they’re discovered with muddy hands, inquisitive minds and a packet of seeds. Gardening and growing with children is, not a luxury or a tick box activity to help achieve a flag or certificate—it’s a powerful tool for nurturing curiosity, resilience, and understanding, both at home and in school.
This pumpkin above isn’t just any pumpkin. It’s been a cycle of education and learning through each step of growing this fruit which appears on supermarket shelves in October and then vanishes along with the ghosts and witches after the curtain has come down on Halloween.
It’s a pumpkin that has been grown by a child, from a seed, who gently buried it on its side beneath the compost, in a recycled yogurt cartoon. They’ve learned about the magic beneath their feet: soil, the source of 95% of our food, and its vital role in our lives. Growing this one plant has opened a whole new world of knowledge from the art of composting letting them see how waste transforms into nourishment for plants, drawing connections between what we eat and how we care for the earth. Climate change comes to life as they observe how weather affects its growth and they learn to adapt in order to create the best environment for their plant.
Teaching through growing
Every pumpkin patch is a microcosm—home to worms, bees, birds, and bugs—offering lessons in wildlife, biodiversity and the interconnectedness of nature. They discover companion planting, recognising how plants support one another, and the importance of nurturing relationships in life. And when the pumpkin is finally harvested, children experience the ‘plot to plate’ message learning about the real value of food, something which has become desperately lost in our society with bags of carrots and parsnips being sold on supermarket shelves for 4p as farmers up and down the country struggle to make ends meet.
With rising food prices, shortages, and the mounting pressures of war and climate change, teaching children to grow their own food is more urgent than ever. It empowers them to understand where their meals come from, appreciate the effort behind every bite, and develop skills that may prove invaluable in uncertain times. Gardening fosters self-sufficiency and a deeper respect for nature, laying the groundwork for responsible citizenship
While you might come against head teachers who just don’t get it, as I have encountered, through perseverance, grit and determination you can demonstrate that gardening can fit seamlessly into the school curriculum. In science, pupils learn about plant biology, soil chemistry, and ecosystems. Literature comes alive as children write stories inspired by their gardens or read about the rich history surrounding plants. Art is everywhere, from sketching leaves to painting vases of handpicked tulips, while maths is woven in through measuring growth, counting seeds, and planning layouts. Gardening isn’t just an add-on it ignites imagination and encourages practical learning.
Benefits to wellbeing through gardening
And of course, there are the health benefits. We all are all now fully aware of the positive benefits to our mental and physical wellbeing that gardening can have on us all. However, children and young people are facing increased challenges, pressures and new risks, resulting in poorer mental health. Statistics from The Children’s Society paint a worrying picture: more than one in four 15-year-olds in Britain report low life satisfaction, a phenomenon recognised as the ‘happiness recession’. Outdoor activities like gardening are an important tool to in the tool kit to support the next generation. They provide a safe space for children to express themselves, connect with friends, and escape the pressures of screens and social media. Time spent outdoors improves mental and physical health, reduces stress, and boosts overall wellbeing.
Less talk and more action
While nature and the world around us will keep spinning without us, we can’t continue without our environment and the soil beneath our feet. Less talk and more action is needed. We need to embrace the outdoors. Making gardening mainstream, not a viral internet trend, but something that is part and parcel of everyday life.
Now is the time to nurture a love of gardening and growing in our children. Let’s bring the outdoors into our homes and classrooms, integrate gardening into the curriculum, and create opportunities for young people to get their hands dirty. By doing so, we’ll not only educate and inspire, but also help reverse the happiness recession and give our children the skills they need to flourish—in every sense of the word.
Bio
Helen is also an ambassador for The Children’s Society, who this year will have a garden designed by Patrick Clarke and supported by Project Giving Back, at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, based on the Japanese philosophy Wabi – Sabi, celebrating the beauty in imperfection. And will shine the light on the UK’s growing wellbeing crisis.
A poem
My favourite flower in the garden is the nasturtium. Underrated but so valuable and a great seed to sow with children due to its versatility. Beautiful and delicious it lies at the heart of my garden at the height of the summer months.
A love letter to nasturtiums by Helen Cross
Bold, bright and brash
A notorious self-seeder, scrambling and sprawling out from the poorest of soils
Scorned for being a nuisance, appearing uninvited
Or an afterthought grown out of necessity to help others flourish
A blight in contrast to the neat rows of veg and colour coordinated dazzling dahlias
But this is just snobbery
For the nasturtium is the hardest grafter
Bold, bright, and beautiful
Versatile from the word go
A friend to many
A companion and protector
From flower to leaf to seed, delicious and versatile in every sense of the word
It doesn’t care what other thinks
A quite determination is built into that small gnarly seed
And without fail left to its own devices those flamed coloured flowers in shades of orange, yellow and red will come back time and time again
Bold, bright, beautiful and defiant
Want to know more?
Join Helen at Jekka's May Herb Days - Tickets available online.
You can find more of Jekka's knowledge about herbs freely available online in Jekka’s blog, our past newsletters and videos as well as Jekka's latest book '100 Herbs to Grow' and Jekka's existing books, namely 'A Pocketful of Herbs' or Jekka's Complete Herb Book, and also by browsing Jekkapedia and exploring our herb based recipes.