6 Wonderful Children’s Books About Gardening
After my son showed an interest in gardening this year, I decided to keep up the momentum by reading picture books on gardening. I have included amazon affiliate links for each of these books, but you may be able to find them at your public library.
These books are perfect for toddlers and preschoolers and are a great way to start (or continue) the conversation about gardening. Make sure to also check out our fun outdoor scavenger hunts: Bug Hunt | Free Printable and Free Nature Scavenger Hunt Printable for Kids.
Here is what we’re reading:
The Garden That We Grew By Joan Holub
After planting the seeds and watching them grow, huge pumpkins appear in a patch. Now we can make pumpkin pie and jack-o’-lanterns! Planting a garden is so much fun, and this rhyming reader shows us how.
Grandpa’s Garden by Stella Fry
This beautifully told story follows Billy from early spring to late summer as he helps his grandpa on his vegetable patch. They dig the hard ground, sow rows of seeds, and keep them watered and safe from slugs. When harvest time arrives they can pick all the vegetables and fruit they have grown. Children will be drawn in by the poetry of the language and the warm illustrations, while also catching the excitement of watching things grow!
Lola Plants A Garden by Anna McQuinn
Readers who loved Lola at the Library, Lola Loves Stories, and Lola Reads to Leo are in for a backyard treat. After Lola reads a book of garden poems, she wants to plant some flowers. She gets books from the library and chooses her plants. Then Lola and her mommy buy the seeds, make the garden, and mark the rows. Now it’s time to wait.
Mrs. Spitzer’s Garden by Edith Pattou
Mrs. Spitzer is a wise teacher who knows many things. She knows about gardens. She knows about children. She knows how similar they are, and how both will flourish if tended lovingly.
There are many remarkable teachers like Mrs. Spitzer in the world, and Edith Pattou’s simple, moving story along with Tricia Tusa’s inspired, whimsical illustrations celebrate all they do, year after year, to help our children grow and blossom.
Whose Garden Is It? by Mary Ann Hoberman
The gardener says the garden belongs to him. But the woodchuck insists that it’s his. And so do the rabbit, the butterfly, the squash bug, and the bumblebee. Even the tiny seeds and whistling weeds think the garden just couldn’t grow without them. As they stroll through the exquisite plants and flowers, Mrs. McGee and her child listen and wonder: Whose garden is it?
Over In The Garden by Jennifer Ward
A one to ten counting book set in a lively garden. This playful counting book introduces readers to a garden and the animals that live there. Sing and clap to the tune of Over in the Meadow, while searching for the hidden numbers on each page!
My children (ages 2 and 3.5) enjoyed all of these books. Over In The Garden is by far their favorite. It involves counting, bugs, and mommies with their babies. My kids love any book that shows the relationship between a mother and her baby. This book brings life to the different insects that live in a garden and is really fun for toddler and preschoolers.