For a healthy and rewarding hobby one should look to planting a garden. It can provide the hobbyist with a boost of Vitamin D from the sunlight of the outdoors as well as some great exercise. We all need physical activity, but you shouldn't be bored getting it. On top of all of this you get to stand back and watch a bare patch of dirt turn in to something full and beautiful.

If you accidentally forget to water or pull the weeds to maintain your garden then all hope is not lost, you can just as easily replace those dead plants with new ones as you can planting the garden to begin with. This can be a valuable lesson for children when you think they are ready to learn some responsibility and better yet, it doesn't involve any helpless pets.

By putting in the effort and time to maintain your garden you get to be rewarded with great smelling flowers, chirping birds and busy little bees all flourishing on that little patch of soil. When it's time to harvest your crop you are rewarded again with a bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables that can be used in a variety of meals or given as gifts to neighbors or the needy.

Over time you will learn what can be planted at different times of year. Figuring this out can provide you and your family with a variety of fresh produce year round without a trip to the store. This can save a lot of money on your grocery bill over time and cut down on product waste.

Some of the less obvious benefits of growing your own garden are not as well known as the ones listed above. We all know that fruits and vegetables are required to maintain a healthy diet but we don't normally think about all those chemicals that have been put on the produce we are buying in the super markets. In order for those companies to produce these things on a large scale they use chemicals to speed of growth and make the plants yield more then normal. Those chemicals are passed on to us through the fruits and vegetables put on the store shelves.

The fertilizers and chemicals that are used prevent the plants from gathering all the vitamins and minerals they would normally hold. While they are still better then canned varieties they just don't compare to the organic options. Organic foods can be quite expensive, but when you grow your own you get the full nutritional benefits without the cost. It may come in smaller crops but will still be better over all.

You can brush up on environmental practices with your own garden as well. Compost piles are a great way to reduce waste and create healthy fertilizer for your plants without all the chemicals and other things that are bad for your body.

With the numerous benefits a garden can offer once wonders why everyone isn't growing their own food. A meal prepared with something you labored to grow will always taste better then the one prepared with something from the store shelf.