When my little picky eater gobbled plums off the tree and gulped fresh goat milk, my eyes went wide. My surprise escalated to shock as he popped vibrant green sugar snap peas in his mouth.
Up until then, my son had eaten from a short list of foods: hamburgers, hotdogs, lasagna, chicken schnitzel, broccoli and, oddly, pickles. Lunches had to be hot and homemade. That changed at my husband’s cousin’s idyllic table on Vancouver Island, with its 100-metre diet of farm-raised chickens, freshly laid eggs and homegrown produce. I didn’t know at the time that this would become the template for our future.
More than a decade later, our own little farm in Pemberton Meadows feeds our family — and often our neighbours, through our tiny farm stand. My son helped plant the asparagus that we cut and eat every day in the spring. He even cautiously consumed cauliflower last summer. When time allows, I invite kids visiting the stand into the garden to pick and pop snap peas and cherry tomatoes. The fresh tastes explode in their mouths, and they almost always ask for more.
Exploring food in the garden encourages kids to try new foods because it removes some of the mealtime stress that goes hand in hand with picky eating, explains occupational therapist Katie Ward.
Even in the garden, Ward advises going very slowly when introducing something new. “Start by looking at, then touching, the food, before moving into tiny licks or with tiny bites, and let them spit it out if they want.” She also suggests allowing little kids to pretend to feed fresh vegetables to their stuffed animals.
I’ve learned to carefully inspect produce before offering it, because a tiny bug or piece of dirt can turn into a deal-breaker. It should be a no-pressure experience, and it’s important to remember that there are no guarantees children will go for the new food right away. Even adults who aren’t picky may need time to adjust to food coming from the dirt rather than from a grocery store shelf, and kids with sensory issues can have extraordinarily astute tastebuds.
You don’t need to create your own farm to experience the magic of growing fresh food. You can start with just one or two large pots on a sunny deck.
Growing food is a time commitment, but the experience can lead kids to a deeper relationship with nutrition and health. Most children love tending and watering, and caring for plants is an excellent mindfulness practice. Even if they don’t bite, nothing is lost! Enjoy the produce and encourage them to tend the plants — at least it has helped them understand the basic life cycle of food.
Picky Planting
Over the years, I’ve picked up a lot of tips on vegetable growing, but the best way to start is to look for support from a local garden centre and a friend with a green thumb. Most importantly, grow something you like to eat, because that will be the incentive to check on your plant babies every day. Veggies generally need an inch of water a week in mild temperatures, but in hot, windy conditions they can happily drink three times that.
- My top three starter plants for encouraging excited eaters without over-the-top effort are lettuce greens, sugar snap peas in the spring and cherry tomatoes in the summer.
- Use larger pots because they retain moisture longer. I like pots 40 to 45 centimetres wide and deep. Before adding soil, put some old plastic containers upside down in the bottom of the pot to fill space and add drainage.
- Generally, plants love six to eight hours of direct light a day, and, if possible, give them some protection from high winds and intense heat. But plants, like children, are remarkably resilient in a variety of conditions.