Is your backyard a barren wasteland of dead, brown grass, with nary an attempt at landscaping in sight? Or perhaps you’ve got the lawn under control and a few plants around the perimeter, but the yard is steeply sloped and therefor virtually useless. Maybe you simply haven’t got any fencing around the perimeter to ensure that small kids don’t wander into the street (and strangers don’t wander in). Whatever your issues with your backyard, it won’t do much good as a play space for your kids unless you design it with their particular needs in mind. So here are just a few tips to help you get your yard in ship shape so that your kids have incentive to get some fresh air and tear themselves away from the one-eyed nanny (the television).
To begin with, you should consider the two main things that kids require in a space that is made for leisure: safety and diversion. It is your job as a parent to ensure that they won’t come to any harm (or at least to try your best to avoid it), but you also need to see to their physical, intellectual, and emotional needs by providing a space that allows them to run around, explore, learn, and interact, and the backyard can be an ideal environment to meet all of these requirements. So let’s start by talking about backyard safety.
First and foremost, you should have a fence of some sort (one with a locking gate is preferable). This will keep kids from wandering out to chase a rogue ball that has gone into the street and it will keep out predators of both the criminal and animal variety. And if you have a pool, it is imperative to keep the area fenced and the gate locked (in some states this is even a law). When it comes to landscaping, you should consider grading a steep yard (flatten it out and put in a retaining wall) to create more usable space with less risk for falls. From there you’ll definitely want a large, grassy area (as opposed to injury-inducing concrete) and landscaping that is free of poisonous plants (as young kids are apt to put just about anything into their mouths).
Now that you’ve addressed safety issues, it’s time to consider design. And this is where you can start to make the process fun for yourself and your kids. You can plant a variety of trees, shrubs, and flowers to provide the shade that will shelter your kids from the elements, a place for them to run and climb, and plenty of color and variety to engage their minds. Including the right plants could bring in a variety of wildlife (birds, squirrels, and so on) and insects that your kids will likely love to watch and identify. And of course, you could set aside a section of the yard for a vegetable or flower garden for the kids to tend.
But you should also think about including the playground equipment and toys that will keep them occupied, from a swing set and seesaw to plenty of sporting goods. Kids have a lot of energy to burn off and there’s no better way to get them out in the fresh air and running around than by creating a backyard space that is uniquely suited to their needs.
