How to Make Your Own Elevated Garden Box for Children

Measure an area on the ground that the child can reach from all sides. A 3-foot wide box should be appropriate for most children. Make it as long as you like.

Stack the interlocking blocks on the outline, using the area you've measured as a guide. Leave the center open for the plants. Limit the height of the walls to 24 to 30 inches so you won't need mortar to keep the blocks stable. The blocks are designed to fit into each other and stay together. A garden box higher than 24 to 30 inches may be too high for children anyway.

Place a 2-inch layer of newspapers in the bottom of the brick box. The newspapers will smother any grass or weeds. Eventually it will break down and provide organic material for the vegetables.

Choose a theme for the garden box. You might try a pizza box and grow tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic and herbs. An alternative would be edible flowers for older children who understand the concept that some flowers can be eaten and others cannot. Edible flowers include pansies, nasturtiums and dianthuses. These three are reliably grown from seeds so children usually won't be disappointed. Another theme would be colors, such as all yellow flowers and vegetables, including yellow tomatoes, carrots, beets and marigolds.

Fill the elevated garden box with potting soil. If budget is a constraint, mix the potting soil with an equal amount of soil taken from another area of the garden. Add fertilizer according to package directions. Mix well.

Plant the seeds with the child. Don't worry too much about straight rows -- the plants don't care. Do worry about the planting depth of the seeds -- if they are planted too deep, they won't sprout.

Water the soil so it is wet to a depth of 6 inches. Have the child plunge a stick into the soil to see how far down the water goes.