Teenagers, Gardening And TigerMountain Foundation

Teenagers and gardening almost seem like the two words don’t mix right? Here at Tiger Mountain Foundation, our local community always comes first. A field-related educational experience creates an opportunity early on for students to learn about the working world. Students can make a connection between school and interesting occupation, stay motivated to graduate and gain the skills for their future career.

Convincing Your Children

Convincing your teen to ditch their phone and come do some planting with you seems almost impossible. But if you help provide them the opportunity, the right tools, and encouragement, your teen might find that they love getting their hands dirty in the garden.

Our Buddy Z

One of our teens here at the Tiger Mountian Foundation is Z. Z was 12 when he first started participating with TigerMountain Foundation. For the past 4 years, he has worked at multiple jobs in gardens. Including farmer’s markets, learning how to plant and grow fresh produce, and how to prepare and cook garden products.

Okra and squash are his favorite plants to grow. Z’s family also loves his green thumb and is benefiting from this wonderful skill!“TigerMountain has helped me with sales skills, getting along and communicating with others, and how to work together with others as a team member”. Once in danger of dropping out completely, TMF assisted him with mentoring improvement in school and he is now on track to graduate high school in 2021.

Zen Out With Your Plants

Plants can often be used as a therapeutic tool. Plants help to improve your mental health, and horticulture therapy is used in many therapeutic programs for teens. Gardens are also known for helping to reduce stress and depression. Gardening has the power to promote products too.

Taking a break from electronics and social media can also help to improve teens’ dwindling attention spans. Green spaces with trees, grass, and plants have been known to improve the attention spans of children

Spending Time Outside Helps To Encourage Exercise

Gardening helps when it comes to promoting outdoor exercise for teens and children. It is important that growing children get fresh air in their face instead of having their eyes glued to a screen. Gardening also helps your teen siblings get along in a way that prevents them from arguing. Overall gardening can really help your family bonding. And all while being active.

Growing Their Own Food Helps To Promote Healthier Eating Habits For Your Children

Teaching your teens about the health benefits behind the plants that they grow is important. It could empower them to make wise (and tasty) food choices for the rest of their lives and possibly future generations.

Bringing a teen into the garden may take some planned teen gardening ideas. Creating these life skills, growing food provides the young person with positive self-esteem, world awareness, business economy, and other worthy attributes.

Organizations that encourage teens to participate in planning and decision making, could help to interest them when they are older. Teens can sometimes have great ideas when they have a push of encouragement. Help your teens with the proper resources and support to help make their dream a reality. Listening to teen gardening ideas helps to provide them with the confidence and creative outlets that young people like Z, crave and thrive upon.

About TigerMountain Foundation

The TigerMountain Foundation (TMF) plants fruits & veggies while cultivating better communities. This is done through community garden volunteer work. Our multi-cultural, inter-generational Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) means we don’t give a handout, we give the community a hand up. Our mission is simple: To empower communities to better themselves from within. We do this through community garden volunteer work through Co-Op gardens in Phoenix, AZ, and landscaping initiatives. In South Phoenix and other challenged communities where we work, there are high rates of incarceration, poor health choices, and a low ranking education system. So how do we combat these challenges? Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD). That just means we don’t give a handout, we give the community a hand up.