They provide us with so much beauty in our lives, and can improve even the most gray, dismal, concrete surroundings.
Children seem to be drawn to beautiful and interesting plants, and they enjoy being outdoors.
However, despite the most terrific reasons for giving attention to plants, the facts is, many curricula neglect plants, and tend to favor animals. We are, after all, animals ourselves - perhaps some find the subject of animals more interesting, or more easy to approach. But plants are important, and it is critical that children gain both an understanding of plant function, and an appreciation for all that they do for us. We eat them, wear them, live in shelters made from them, breathe oxygen that they have provided - even write on them, fuel our cars and homes from their decaying remains, and use products made from them each and every day. Gardening is an exciting, approachable way to teach kids about plants.