I have one that LOVES plants - she is always in the dirt. She missed the ETPS because of a track meet - but she did attend the MTPS and made swaps with other gardeners and had a great time. I do hope that she will be able to come with me in the spring. :D

My older child did have an interest in anything in the dirt - particularly worm farming. But as he grew older - his interests changed and now he is just a typical teenage boy. I miss his little worm farm...and so do my houseplants.

When I was younger we would spend some time at my grandmother's in the summer. We had to help in the garden. We might hoe weeds or have to pick and shell beans or peas or shuck corn. It was the summer and we wanted to fish and play. When you're made to do something you didn't want to do you sometimes develop a dislike of it.

Later in school we would grow plants in the window sills and to see the plants sprout and grow was really interesting. I think the first thing I grew was wheat in a milk carton and then a cushaw pumpkin that later went in the yard and produced several pumpkins. That's when I developed an appreciation of growing things.

Nowadays, if it's not electronic kids don't want anything to do with it especially if work is involved. If they could just grow something that they could connect with and maybe get some recognition for, they might pick up the appreciation I did for for gardening.

This is an electronic age. There is facebook, wii, twitter, nitendo ds, cell phones and the list goes on and on and on. As a parent of two teenagers times are different. My girls enjoy watching me and they love to see something grow from seed. I try to stress these are important things to learn, saving seed and growing from seed. They half heartedly listen, but they do think it is cool when we plant something by seed and watch it grow.

I think that there are so many outlets that attract teenagers now days that gardening is on the "uncool" side. Deep down inside I can only hope that some of the things they have seen me do with seeds and such, they are retaining somewhere deep in their little heads.

I remember my father doing it, and neighbors around us, now my father comes to me about and saving seed. I finally got my sister in it, she was always the frilly type, I was the tom boy. She was hooked once she germinated a moon flower vine. Now I have been teaching her how to save the seeds. She just smiles and looks at me amazed.

I was never the slightest bit interested in gardening as a child, teenager, or young adult. Too many other things to do! Friends, and as I got older, boys, took priority over most everything. ;)

But my mom was always a gardener. I grew up surrounded by plants.

I never thought much about them, but then I moved out and my husband and I bought a house. One of the very first things I did was start planting little gardens, then more, and more, until I had planted almost the entire (small) front yard.

To me, it didn't look like anyone's "home" unless there were gardens, because that's what my original home looked like.

So, I think many times it's an interest that forms in childhood by the example of your parent(s), but may not manifest until later in life. I've heard similar stories from other gardeners on gw threads.

If I had kids I would enjoy it if they were interested in gardening with me, but I wouldn't be worried that they would never garden if they didn't. :) They would. Eventually. ;)

Just wanted to add: countrycarolyn, just read your post and it reminded me of things my mom did with us when we were young. :) Believe me, they're soaking it all up, whether they realize it or not. LOL Just like you and I did.

I used to be a young gardener! But y'all know how the years fly by ;)

I was always fascinated with plants. As a child my favorite thing was to go hunting for wildflowers, collecting seeds, studying the critters that abound.

I've always gardened too. Mom says I helped plant green beans when I was two years old, but as a teenager I got really really tired of helping weed and water a humongous UN-MULCHED Texas garden!

But mostly I've just been consummately in love with nature...especially in the spring or fall, early in the morning when it's quiet and the air smells sweet... I'd often become enchanted with the magic of the morning, and sometimes I would even play hooky from school to play outside. It was my sanctuary.

Even when my husband and I lived in apartments, I still composted, and had sad little plants in the windowsills. Once we bought our first house, the brakes came off and I became a full-time happy garden maniac :D

So some of us can't live without gardening, like living without breathing! But not all of us come to it early.