If you find it difficult to keep your children busy while you attempt to spend some quality time in your garden, forget about trying to distract them and let them be a part of the experience instead. This a great way to get the little ones off the couch and outdoors when the weather is warm and can provide them with a sense of ownership and responsibility. Plus it's a fantastic opportunity to teach them environmental awareness.

The author of Earth easy has identified the top 10 kid-friendly crops that are easier to grow and have shorter growing seasons:

Sunflowers - A must for a child's garden. Plant just one or two, since they take a lot of room. Be sure to gorw 'confectionery' sunflowers, the type grown for food.

Lettuce/Mescluns- A quick and reliable crop to give the child fast results, and also a good way to interest kids in salads.

Radishes - Quick results for the young gardener. Radishes germinate in 3-10 days, and have a very short growing season of 20-30 days.

Snow peas - A quick-growing early crop, and fun for kids to eat right off the vine. They take about 10 days to germinate and mature in about 60 days.

Cherry tomatoes - Gotta have 'em! These may be the most fun crop for a child, aside from strawberries. Plant in full sun and use seedlings rather than planting from seed.

Nasturtiums - These flowers are easy to grow and yield results quickly, which encourages the young gardener. Nasturtiums bloom about 50 days after the seeds are planted, with orange, yellow and red flowers. They prefer sunny, dry locations and do well in poor soil.

Bush beans - Fast, easy, high yield and fun to harvest. Bush beans germinate in 4-8 days, and mature in 40-65 days.

Carrots - Seeds can be sown directly into soil; carrots prefer cooler temperatures. They can be slow to germinate, so be patient. Carrots will mature in about 60 days.The soil should be free of rocks and easy for the carot to grow 'down'.

Potatoes - A 'never-fail' crop. You can plant red or white varieties; red will mature faster. Children seem to favor the red variety

Pumpkin - A 'must' for a child's garden, if you have the room. Plant seeds in a small hill; poke three holes in the hill and put one seed in each hole. Seeds will sprout in about 1 week; after a few days, vine leaves begin to form and creep along the ground.

Hit the jump for more details about these crops that will turn your child's thumb green in no time!

» Eartheasy