Plants - children need them!

Plants are an important element of any child's outdoor environment. They provide, texture, colour, scent and also a stage for various insect interplays.

Often in child care centres, preschools and schools, the plants selected for use are done so with little thought as to how children may interact or "play" with them. In terms of landscape design, if you walk around your neighbourhood you see the same types of plants planted in most gardens. This lack of plant diversity happens over a period of time and results in a landscape full of murraya paniculata - murraya/orange jessamine hedges, buxus spp - box and phormium spp and cordyline spp in every garden. To the casual eye this may all look neat and tidy but a level of boredom may be experienced so that when a plant we have never seen before appears in someone's garden we "oo" and "ahh" about how interesting it is.

Children love diversity. When planning an outdoor environment for them, the plants selected need to display attributes of colour, texture, seasonal change, size (in relation to leaf, flower and seed) and shape (strappy versus rounded, etc). This gives children the opportunity for multiple play use and demonstrates a level of newness every day in their environment.
Plants also need to be-

• as local (indigenous - meaning originate in your area/region) as possible because therefore their chance of success is greater
• be as hardy as they can be in a number of ways - managing during a drought, surviving a frost now and then and also be able to suit being planted in various soil types
• climate specific - a plant from a cold climate being planted in a subtropical climate may not be successful 

As adults we look for plants that have as little maintenance as possible but even a plant with low maintenance needs some care. There is no such thing as a plant with no maintenance - it would be great if there was but it's just not possible. The level of maintenance differs from plant to plant. Some may need a quick trim once a year, others pruning after flowering and if a more structured look is required, eg: a hedge to a particular height, then a monthly prune and shape is a must. Once a space is completed a good idea is to do a list of the plants in the playspace and the maintenance they require. Allocate how this maintenance can be done - some can be done by the children and staff, ie, picking off any dead leaves and then using the specimens on the collage trolley, etc, and some can be done at family working bees or by a gardener if need be.

Plants need care when they are first planted and this means WATER - on average, for plants to establish they need to be watered every second day with the hose held on them for no less than 30 seconds. A commitment needs to be made by staff to take on this task for a minimum of six months or so in partnership with the children and also families if possible. If this isn't workable then a low cost drip irrigation system is a must.

Plants being as unpredictable as they are makes them a secondary consideration when designing an outdoor playspace for children, however, plants for me are the most important part. Yes, the paving looks good, or the decking but it's the plants that make a landscape and a children's playspace is no different.

Also if children aren't used to plants being in their space then a period of introduction is all part of making them aware of their new environment. Have children adopt a plant to look after which may include watering and monitoring it's care (even warning other children about not treading on the plants!). Put a label on the plant with the child's name, document the plant's progress, identify any pests/diseases, undertake any maintenance and photograph the results. The plants are there to be used and are a useful learning tool.

It may be beneficial, if naturalistic play is a concept you wish to to introduce to your centre, to utilise the presentation, "Enhancing Children's play in the outdoors" at your next staff training session, together with Plant adoption certificates and plant labels to encourage children to bond and care for new or existing plants.  

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Birds not Bees?

In the past I have had occasions where people say they want to attract birds to their playspaces but no "bees or other insects". The idea that flowering plants are also bad because they encourage bees and therefore are a major safety risk. Yes, some children are allergic to bees (I was one of them, getting bitten on my 6th birthday and spending the day in hospital instead of at my birthday pool party), but does this mean these children shouldn't be allowed to experience flowers? Also how can we design playspaces with plants that attract ONLY birds and prevent bees and other insects from entering the space?

Basically it's impossible but this then presents a challenge to designers and educators as to how we can turn around people's fears of the outdoors and associated insects, etc. When I was young, we spent heaps of time outdoors and got to know a diverse range of insects - some just observed and others collected. These days with computers, playstations and the additional fear of letting children play outside, the interactions between adults and insects are decreasing. Watching children being bewitched by ants for 2 hours is amazing to watch and these experiences need to continue and not disappear!

To attract birds is to attract bees which also brings insects and that's part of a natural and evolving playspace - as educators embracing these additions to the outdoor environment rather than avoiding them and seeing them constantly as a risk will ensure that children are provided with opportunities to experience the natural world at its best.

Having said that, bees can potentially be a fatal risk for some children, so part of letting them play outdoors freely may involve strategies including - long sleeved tops and pants when flowering plants are in full bloom, awareness by staff and other children about bees so that the child can be observed and protected during outdoor play and discussing what to do when you see a bee with the child so that they have some personal control over their environment.
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Safety versus Challenge

One of the biggest issues in designing natural playspaces is that adults often seem to think that if you include items that don't look like play equipment and softfall then children's safety is at risk. Rocks and boulders tend to be the biggest concern and one which I am confronted with continually. To be honest, I haven't heard of any major issues with rocks/boulders in child care and preschools whereas I have heard of heaps of accidents involving play equipment and softfall. So why do we have this fear of rocks? Is it because they aren't widely used? Is it based on our past experiences with rocks? Is it because they are an unknown when it comes to how children react?

The key with boulders is to ensure they are less than 500mm, have rounded edges and are stable. Using boulders as part of a number of physical and climbing structures gives children an opportunity to master and test their balance and physical capabilities many times over without getting bored. In comparison play equipment once mastered in child care and preschool becomes boring and educators know what happens when children are bored - they think of ways to use the equipment that is inappropriate - this can cause accidents, behaviour issues, etc.

I remember talking to a director recently who had an excellent example about how children may play outdoors. The centre in the inner west of sydney had a full on climbing structure with a huge number of steps up to a tower, no railings, ladders on either side and ropes to swing on. They had this item for over 15 years with zero accidents. They were asked to remove the item as it was unsafe by DoCS and they replaced it with a lower metal play item and wetpour rubber softfall.

Within 2 weeks there were small accidents and then in the third week a child broke their arm. The director reflected that the staff thought the new item caused accidents because before children knew they had to be careful. They perceived the height of the high structure and what they had to do to get up there. When the smaller item was introduced, their lack of care diminished as the children seemed to perceive the new item as easy, which resulted in accidents.

So what is more beneficial to children - an outdoor environment that challenges children not just physically but mentally as well or one where there is no risk; no challenge and therefore no learning......
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Introduction

Welcome to my blog about natural playspaces. I am a natural playspace designer in Sydney, NSW, with a focus on preschools, child care centres and schools.I have a background in early childhood education initially as a teacher then as a director. I have worked in an assortment of centres, both private and commercial, community and religious based, some funded wholly by Local and State government bodies. I have also worked in varying capacities in Local, State and Federal government Childcare organisations.

When I was a director/teacher I was always baffled with adult perceptions of what constitutes an outdoor environment for children. This led me to study further and gain my landscape design and horticulture qualifications with an idea to change the world by adding natural playspaces to one centre at a time.

I believe that children in early childhood centres (some attending for up to 10 hours a day) deserve a natural, inspiring and aesthetic environment outdoors. I really dislike the word playground when used in relation to outdoor areas in child care centres and preschools - playgrounds have always seemed to me to be those "one-hit" weekend or after school experiences, where play is often in short bursts and then it's time to go home. In a child care centre, play is the basis for all learning and it is in these environments that I think the word playspace encompasses what the outdoor environment really is.

In this blog I hope to pass on ideas and share my experiences in working with varying children's services to create natural playspaces and also to provide a forum about natural playspaces, promoting information exchange about how important they are!
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