We always wanted to instill the love of “digging in the dirt” in our five grandchildren. When they were very young, we got the idea from Fairytale Town in Sacramento to help them create an “Alphabet Garden”. If you've ever seen that wonderful garden—especially through the eyes of children—you know what an enchanting place it is. And so, we decided to recreate such a place on our own property in Grass Valley.
We had just dedicated a large space of fenced land to 16—(yes, 16!)—raised beds. That would be the perfect place to establish the Alphabet Garden. We selected two of those raised beds for the kids. After we installed a drip system and filled the beds with the yummiest of soils—it was time for the grandkids to get to work racking, hoeing and preparing the soil. That part of the process could have gone on for summers on end!
But—it was time to plan our garden! The first task was for the kids to select the alphabet letters that would be the basis of their plant choices. Since we have the five grandkids, ( three were four years & two were six years old), and luckily they each have a name starting with a different letter, that letter became the first of five letters that they would each be in charge of. Their other letters were “pulled out of a hat” so that each child had five letters—leaving me, the happy grandma gardener, with the last letter. Thus, we had our 26 letters for the garden.
Over the winter, we sent a few suggestions with pictures of plants to each child coinciding with all of their “letters”. We made sure our suggestions were a good variety of veggies and flowering plants, annuals and perennials for each. At that point, it was time for them to make their plant choices. In the spring, we provided them with wooden letters from the local craft store. And then, the painting began! We had wooden stakes ready to be painted white on which the letters were hot-glued. After all the preparations, we had a grand parade out to the garden where each wooden lettered stake was “planted” alphabetically in rows in the two raised beds. Of course, we all made the not-so-scary scarecrow to keep our garden safe. Once completed, the time had come for a trip to the nursery for seeds and starter plants. Back home in the garden, each was lovingly planted by the kids next to the appropriate letter. And then, the magic began—they grew right along with the children!
By the end of the first summer, we had our fully blooming Alphabet Garden. Each time one or more child came to visit, the first place they checked out was their garden and their very own plants. Each spring they refreshed and replanted as needed. By the time we moved from that little piece of paradise after six years, three of the kids were 10 and two were 12. The garden continued to thrive and so did their interest in it and their love for the beautiful fruits of their labors over the years. They had truly created a magical place which still lives on in their memories as they head off to freshman & junior year in years in college! And since gardeners are always kids at heart, this is the perfect time to create your own Alphabet Garden Magic.