Our children haven’t grown any flowers in our real-world garden, but they have managed to tear up a bunch of bean plants; stumble repeatedly into stinging nettles; and “accidentally” snap the umbrella-shade for our outside table.

Not gardeners yet, then. Maybe Gro Flowers can help though: it’s the latest app from ecologically-minded developer Gro Play, following its very-good Gro Book, Gro Recycling and Gro Garden apps from the last year.

Gro Flowers is, as you might have realised, all about the flora, in this iOS and Android app aimed at 2-6 year-olds.

“Become your own gardener and create amazing new flower species with the tip of your finger. Simply choose a color and start drawing on one petal and the pattern will be repeated automatically on the other petals, with a kaleidoscope effect,” explains its app store listing.

“Then help the bees, butterflies and the other creatures to pollinate your flowers, and your colorful creations will spread across the field. But look out for the nasty pesticide spray that could make the bees dizzy and tired.”

So, there’s an environmental message here, alongside the digital creativity. Children are rewarded for looking after the bees, because the nectar they produce rewards them with more colours and brushes to use within the app – more than 70 and 50 respectively, in total.

“Biodiversity in a nutshell,” as the blurb puts it. And the app saves all the flowers that your kids create in a virtual collection book, to show off later.

We really liked the previous Gro Play apps, and not just for their (admirable) message about sustainability and green-living. They’re easy to use, look good, and more than hold their own on the crowded app stores.

What’s more, this is the kind of app that, through its educational elements, could get your children interested in exploring the real world of flowers, bees and sustainable living.

Gro Flowers costs £1.99 for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, and £1.89 for Android from the Google Play store.