A child-friendly garden isn’t always the easiest feat in your outdoor home. Adults often see gardens as places of tranquility and calm; spaces where they can let the stresses of daily life slide away.

Young children see gardens rather differently – as playgrounds where they can charge around without a care in the world. Who can blame them for showing such spirit – why not encourage them instead by making your garden child-friendly as possible so that they can have outdoor fun safely and happily.

How to Make a Child-Friendly Garden

Here’s a few ways that you can make your garden a magical place for children to run free in.

1. Child-proof your water features

Large uncovered water areas like ponds are unsafe for young children so it is vital that you take precautions such as buying protective pond grilles and netting from garden centers. Doing so will enable your children to watch colorful goldfish darting around your pond without there being any danger of them falling into the water.

2. Pick gardening plants that are kid-friendly

When summer arrives and children make their first foray of the year into the garden, delicate plants are often an early casualty of rampaging feet. This is why it is vital to pick plants which are tough and durable. Phormium, sumac, palms and eucalyptus are plants which are robust enough to thrive in areas where children play.

3. Child-friendly garden – tear up your lawn

Artificial lawns can withstand wear and tear from children’s feet better than old-fashioned real grass can and are easier to maintain too. If you don’t fancy going down the artificial grass route then you could always buy some extra-hardy grass seed.

And if you are willing to shell out a little bit extra, you could invest in some longer-bladed padded turf suitable for children’s play areas. Specialist retailers should stock this.

4. Provide some garden play equipment

And now for the fun bit – it’s always good to have a good stock of play equipment locked in the garden shed and ready to be brought out when the kids want to play. A trampoline is one such garden play essential; respect your neighbors privacy and don’t set it up too near the garden wall!

A miniature football goal with a net will give your kids a target (other than your house’s windows) to practice their shooting skills at and setting up a garden swing offers hours of dreamy fun.

However, it is best to think carefully before installing a sandpit in your garden. This is because, speaking from personal experience, sand has a habit of ending up in living room carpets after being transported there via the gaps between kids’ toes!

5. Last minute gardening tips

Grown-ups need their space in the garden just as much as children do. Introduce a bit of sensible segregation – perhaps a decking area which is out of bounds to children – and you can watch the children having fun while you relax.

For more garden ideas on Stagetecture, click here.