Gardening utensils and supplies for kids

Rose Red & Lavender: Mini cacti, $6.50 each

New York Botanical Garden: Hat, gloves and apron set, $51

New York Botanical Garden: Gardening Tools, $10 per set

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Wave Hill
Through October, this idyllic public plot overlooking the Hudson River offers bimonthly nature walks ($5 for nonmembers). Kids of all ages will have a ball hunting for mushrooms and tracking butterflies through forests and fields. Weekend family art projects (free with admission) explore the ever-evolving growth of the gardens: Collect leaves to collage or sketch the first flower buds of spring. Youngsters can make even more of their discoveries with a flower press ($5 to $20), an earthworm nursery ($26) or binoculars ($5.50) from the Bronx center’s small but very worthy gift shop. 675 W 252nd St (enter from Independence Ave at 249th St), Bronx (718-549-3200, wavehill.org). Advance registration recommended.

Rose Red & Lavender
At this Brooklyn gardening store, youngsters can take a one-off class on growing potatoes ($15 fee includes container) or lettuce ($20 fee includes seeds and mini greenhouse). As a bonus, the pretty shop, redolent with the scents of exotic flowers, offers some delightfully freakish curios: bug-eating pitcher plants ($15 and up), air plants your kids can wear as brooches ($8 and up) and pocket-size cacti that can be turned into fridge magnets ($6.50). 653 Metropolitan Ave between Leonard St and Manhattan Ave, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-486-3569, roseredandlavender.com).

New York Botanical Garden
Everything about the NYBG is big and lush, including its Ruth Rea Howell Family Garden. Your crew can drop by for its “Dig, Plant, Grow” afternoon programs (free with admission). Or register tykes for a six- or 12-session set of classes; three- to five-year-olds learn the rudiments of planting, while older kids plant flowers and veggies. Gear them up at the garden’s well-stocked shop/nursery. We love the pint-sized hat, gloves and apron set ($51) and the mini gardening tools ($10 per set). Kazimiroff Blvd (at Fordham Rd), Bronx (718-817-8700, nybg.org). Advance registration for classes required.

Sprout Home
This Billyburg outpost delights discriminating child botanists with its gaggles of flowers, plants and minitrees. One Saturday a month beginning in April, kids can learn the ins and outs of starting seeds (April 17), herbs (May 15) and flowering annuals (June 12). Pick up the elephant watering can ($12) and the felt bird’s nest ($27 to $39) to keep their enthusiasm going at home. 44 Grand St between Kent and Wythe Aves, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-388-4440, sprouthome.stores.yahoo.net). Advance registration for classes required.

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