Gardening is truly a multi-sensory experience.
Walking around the Desert Botanical Gardens I came across their Sensory Garden. The sign at the entry let me know that I was now entering a garden where you should stop and smell, touch and experience all the plants. Up until then I was an observer from a safe distance (many of the plants are cacti and although beautiful to look at, pretty painful if experienced close-up). But in this area, it is encouraged to fully engage with the plants and almost guaranteed that you will discover something new.
I was fortunate to grow up surrounded by acres of beautiful gardens and spent my mornings picking fragrant flowers and tending to my very own vegetable garden. I have very specific memories of my childhood and they revolve around how the gardens smelled, tasted and felt.
One of the reasons why I started this blog was to help people open their eyes to the beauty and wonder that surround us every day. I believe that my childhood experiences helped me hone my ability to see the beauty of the everyday, and one way to instill this in your children is to help them experience life through all their senses and get them to put down their ipads. Creating a sensory ‘scratch and sniff” garden would be a great way to get their other senses involved and create wonder and discovery in their lives.
Here is a great list of plants to create your very own ‘Scratch n sniff’ garden:
Furry, soft and silky plants
Bumpy, tickly, and prickly plants
- Blue fescue
- Northern sea oats
- Fennel
- Purple fountain grass
- Roses
- Another guide to roses
- Purple coneflower
- Sea holly
- Hens-and-chicks
- Pampas grass
- Tickle me plant
- Ferns
Smooth, spongy and playful plants
Scented herbs and edible plants
More suggestions here. How To Create ‘Scratch N Sniff’ Sensory Gardens For Kids