Gardening can be a great way to relieve stress, get exercise, and to feel connected to the environment around you. These benefits can be as good for your kids as they are for you!

Besides the obvious benefits, spending time with your kids in the garden will give you lots of opportunities to teach them about the world around them, as well as give you a chance to spend time together without the distraction of phones, televisions, or video games.

Kids love to watch things grow, and once they've seen a pea turn into a shoot, and then a vine, flowers, and eventually delicious pea pods, the dinner-time veggie battle will be half over.

Some of the easiest and most fun things to grow are peas, carrots, cucumbers, kale, lettuce, strawberries, and cherry tomatoes. Besides being easy, they also lend themselves to being great snacks without having to cook them.

The easiest place to start gardening with your kids is to set aside a corner of your garden just for them. Plant things together, and check on them frequently to watch their progress. Teach your child which plants are weeds, which are yours, and how to tell the difference. Show them which bugs to squish (caterpillars), ones to avoid (bees), and which ones should be kept around to eat the pests, like lady bugs and praying mantis.

Even a tiny garden can be a great opportunity for some great quality time with your kids. If you keep it simple and keep it fun, they might even love it as much as you do!

/news//printme.php?doc=crop-in-summer.php">Click to print this article.