10 Small Garden Ideas for Children That Work Better Than a Huge Backyard

The Secret Sunflower Hideaway

I totally caved a few summers ago and bought one of those giant, brightly colored plastic playhouses because I felt terribly guilty that we didn’t have a big yard.

It was a massive mistake that ended up costing a fortune, immediately killed what little grass we had, and literally baked like a plastic oven in the afternoon sun.

That’s when I ripped it out and decided to just grow a fort instead.

Creating a sunflower fort for kids is honestly one of the cheapest, most magical ways to give them a sense of privacy in a small space outdoor play area.

Building a Living Wall

The trick here is to ditch the traditional straight rows and plant your seeds in a tight, six-foot-wide U-shape instead.

I always use mammoth sunflower varieties because they easily shoot up to ten feet tall, creating perfectly dense, natural walls by mid-summer.

Just make sure you leave a clear two-foot gap at the front for the “doorway” so they can actually crawl inside their new hideout.

It completely redefines a standard family friendly garden design by turning the plants themselves into the actual play structure.

Creating the Inner Sanctum

Once those massive green stalks are a few feet tall, the inside becomes this wonderfully shaded, secret little room.

We always throw down a cheap outdoor rug or a thick, quilted picnic blanket right in the middle to make the ground super comfortable for bare feet.

My kids will drag their books, toys, and snacks in there, hiding out for hours while feeling like they are totally off the grid.

It is such a dreamy space for imaginative outdoor play, and the best part is that it costs about three dollars in seeds to create.

And honestly, once they are chilling in their gorgeous living fort, you are definitely going to want to invite some beautiful butterflies to visit them, so hit the next button below because we are setting up a colorful, pint-sized pollinator station next!