It's gardening time again and, with the increase in gas and grocery prices, what better time to introduce your family to the aspect of growing their own foods? Toddlers in particular are very open to the new experience of gardening. Toddlers are always intrigued by new things. They love to play in the dirt, water plants, and watch their favorite foods growing right before their little amazed eyes. If you're lost as to how you should start introducing your toddler to gardening, here are some tips to help!

Choose Foods They Like - One of the best ways to get your toddler involved in raising a garden is to choose foods, plants, and flowers that your child likes. If you toddler loves tomatoes, then pick up a packet of tomato seeds and go from there. When it's something that they can look forward to enjoying, then you'll pique their interest every time.

Child-size Gardening Tools - Another way to introduce your toddler to gardening is to make sure that they have their own child-sized gardening tools to enjoy. If you purchase them their own set of tools they will be more likely to enjoy their time with you in the garden. Toddlers and small children thoroughly enjoy doing things that they see their parents doing. So hand over a gardening set of their own and you'll be on the road to creating a gardening lover for life.

Start Your Garden with Seeds - A lot of people will just jump right to buying small plants to go into their gardens. But when you're getting your children involved, it's a lot more fun for both you and them if you start out with seeds. Let them poke holes in the dirt with their little fingers, drop in seeds one by one, and then cover them up and await the arrival of the first sprouts. When those sprouts begin pushing their way through the surface, you'll be amazed at the utter astonishment that your toddler will express. This is the perfect time to talk about baby plants and to show your toddler each new leaf that sprouts from their new hobby. If it's still too early to plant seeds outside, then just start them inside. You can use starter trays, or even just paper cups and dirt (make sure you mark what plant is what).

Garden Care & Upkeep - When introducing and involving your toddler in the hobby of gardening, it is a wonderful idea to let them help you in the care and upkeep of the garden. You can let them water the plants that they are quickly becoming obsessed with. You can point out the weeds and let them pull for you. You can even have your toddler hold stakes for you as you tie up the tomato vines that they've been watching grow from seeds. The every day care and upkeep of your garden is just as exciting to your toddler as any of the other parts of raising a garden.

Time for Pickin' - You and your toddler have planted, watered, nurtured, and cared for these plants from seeds to full maturity. What better way to celebrate all of the work that you've put into these last few weeks or months than to let your excited toddler pick the very first fruits and vegetable? How excited your toddler will be when you inform them that they can finally eat a tomato off of their very own plant!

You have now planted the seeds of a gardener into the young mind of your toddler. As long as you make it fun and exciting they will love helping you out in the garden. Remind them that they'll get to eat the fruits of their labor. They will be so happy when it's harvest time and you'll be happy to have taught them about this simple part of life.