Easy Ideas for a School Gardening Club

A school gardening club is a great way to get kids outside while learning about plants and nature. There's nothing better than picking fruit or vegetables you've grown yourself, and the experience is a unique educational opportunity. A school gardening club is more than just planting seeds, it cultivates curiosity, patience, teamwork and provides a valuable insight into where our food comes from. Children can get a real seed to kitchen table experience, all while spending time outdoors learning in nature.

Gardening club isn't just for summer, either. Kids can grow plants all year round, as well as think about how to protect them from pests and the nutrients they need to grow successfully.

School Garden Club Ideas

Planting and growing fruit and vegetables is the obvious garden club activity, but there's so much more that children can do in the garden.

Design and build mini greenhouses

Starting seeds off in a mini greenhouse is a fantastic way to learn about germination, as the seeds are visible if you use a clear plastic container.

Plant a seed in a pot to take home

Sunflowers or beans are great for this activity. A class or school competition to see who can grow the tallest bean or sunflower is a fun challenge, too.

What plants are good to grow in a school garden club

Summer

1. Pumpkins
2. Peppers
3. Herbs

Autumn

Hardy annual plants are good to plant at this time of year.

Plant bulbs such as daffodils, tulips, and snowdrops to flower in the spring.

If you want plants to harvest over the winter, garlic, onions, kale, and chard can all be planted in autumn.

Grow a herb garden

Herbs are easy to grow, hardy and smell great. A school herb garden is a lovely way to incorporate the plants grown into food that the children see cooked and eaten, too.

Nature activity ideas for a school garden club

Set up a compost bin.

A compost bin a fantastic way to introduce children to sustainable practices in the garden. Attainable Sustainable has an easy guide to making a compost bin.

Go on a bug hunt.

A bug hunt is a great interactive way to learn about bugs in the garden. Use my handy minibeast checklist to get started.

Save plants from pests

Test natural ways to stop insects and other animals from eating the plants. Copper tape and egg shells, for example, are good for stopping slugs.

Marigolds and garlic are good for naturally repelling pests.

Pesticides and other chemicals are toxic to bees so it's really important to avoid using them if you can.

Grow a bee garden

Grow a bee garden full of plants that attract bees. Choose plants with different flower shapes as different species of bees have different length tongues. Native plants are often better suited to local bee species.

Build a bug hotel

Build a bug hotel to attract small insects like ladybirds, bees, and butterflies. Pinecones, bamboo sticks, twigs, and other natural materials are good materials to use. If you don't have much room, Red Ted Art has a great idea for a small, simple bug hotel.

Feed the birds

Make a simple birdfeeder using pinecones, lard and seeds. Birdfeeders are a good winter garden club activity as winter is when food for birds is in short supply.

If you want an even easier birdfeeder, threading Cheerios onto a pipecleaner to hang on a tree is another fun idea.

Last Updated on June 25, 2025 by Emma Vanstone