Pick Your Own Party
One of the most successful events we ever held was a summer ‘pick your own’ party – with a little forward planning you can provide a fun and cost-effective party for younger children that gives extra value to your garden.
Shut up the pets
If you have dogs or cats, put them in a bedroom with water during the period in which you prepare for the party and host it.
Prepare the picks
A vegetarian family might put vegetarian sausages on sticks, while meat eaters can use cocktail sausages and satay chicken. Don’t use cocktail sticks, get long bamboo kebab sticks and punch them through paper plates which you can then set in you flower beds.
Lollipops with plastic wrappings can be stuck straight in the soil for children to find, and if you lay cling film around your strawberry plants you can simply tip shop-brought strawberries onto it to augment your garden crop.
We hung toffee apples from our old apple tree by thin cotton that the children could easily snap, and put cartons of juice under the leaves of our hosta plants for them to find.
We provided loads of paper plates and put bowls of whipped cream and sugar on the table, along with a chocolate fountain for children to dip their strawberries into.
Cleaning up
You’ll need loads of wet wipes and we found it useful to arm each adult with a packet of them, a fly swat and a tube of sun-cream. Only one wasp bothered our little partygoers and that was swiftly sent to wasp heaven, but it’s worth remembering that the earlier in the day you hold such a party, the less you’ll be bothered; wasps are most active between 3 – 5 pm, so bear that in mind.