Cure Picky Eating with a Vegetable Garden

By Michelle Mady

I am a mom of five, and of those five children, three are extremely picky eaters. One actually lives on goldfish crackers and peanut butter sandwiches. So I have tried a lot of the parenting suggestions around picky eating and how to encourage them to try new things. I have been at my wits end in the past, desperate to try whatever I could to get them to eat.

I have been at my wits end in the past, desperate to try whatever I could to get them to eat.

I’ve tried allowing them to just lick new foods. I’ve tried making plates colorful and offering new tastes and textures. They have come to the grocery store with me to pick out new items, and I’ve mixed ingredients in new ways. Nothing was working.

But my frustration was lifted last summer while tending to our family garden.

My very picky child was so interested in the tomato plants and had helped me all spring and summer caring for them. She asked me how tomatoes tasted, and I realized I’d stumbled upon something great. There was a natural interest in the plant, and my daughter had some ownership in the growth of the vegetable. And now she was ready for the next step.

We did find out that day that tomatoes are not a tasty food for her!

However, with that first taste, I realized how much being part of the process helped her to see the food differently. We also had cucumbers and peppers, which she tasted as well. The cucumber, she said, was “so delicious for a green thing.”  What a win, and the nicest compliment a green item will ever get from my daughter.

With that first taste, I realized how much being part of the process helped [my daughter] to see the food differently. 

I already knew that having children help with meal prep is a good way to encourage them to try new foods, but it didn’t work nearly as well as this. Being part of the process from sprout to vegetable was a meaningful journey and allowed for a comfortability around the food.

Much like my tomato example, which as a person who does not love tomatoes, I actually get, it’s not always going to work. Sometimes it isn’t picky eating, it is just a dislike of a taste or texture. But the fact that she tried it showed me that she is willing to experiment with new tastes if she is invested in the outcome.

Maybe a vegetable garden isn’t your thing, and meal prep with your child seems like a task that isn’t worth your sanity. But if you are battling with a picky eater, consider finding a way for them to be a part of the process. How can you include them in some piece of it so it becomes “worth it” to take a taste? You may not always get the outcome you are hoping for, but there is great value in the journey!

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