Some of our favorite bloggers from Gardenaut have agreed to contribute their gardening wisdom here on The Tranquil Parent. This is thrilling to us for two reasons: One, because despite the fact that we need to shutter our gardening blog, we'd hate to let these talents go; and two, because the role of Gardenaut had outgrown its name, incorporating reflections on harmonizing with the natural world and being a "green parent" in ways that fit in very well here on the Tranquil Parent.

Thanks to all for joining us as we find further connections between a life lived in harmony with the earth and the practices of centered parenting.

Okay, the following article is for all of the rookie gardeners or wanna-be gardeners out there. If I did it, you can do it! As I mentioned back in May, very few green plants have survived under my care in previous years. But I felt committed to making a difference in my food chain this year, and I figured that if I could successfully grow just a few vegetables and herbs in my backyard this summer, I could easily help the environment, eat more healthily and teach my daughter a few valuable lessons about food and nutrition.

When I turn the corner each morning to see our thriving vegetables, there are some days that I look like a kid in the candy shop! I practically did a cartwheel last week when I saw our first beautiful and bright green zucchini. It was small, but scrumptious and definitely worth the 60 day wait!

In mid-June, we decided to transplant our indoor herbs (basil, dill, chives) out to the garden, too. The basil was looking a little scary at the time of transplanting, but all three herbs are shooting up and looking prosperous. They are not quite ready to toss into pasta, but I am hoping a little more time and sunshine will bring those herbs to fruition in August.

Like any rookie gardeners, my husband and I did make a few mistakes with our garden. Clearly, we were overambitious with the carrots and broccoli (in the back of the garden). We used the entire seed packet and planted them on top of one another. Upon planting the initial seeds of these plants, I should have spaced them further out or created two rows. I will be thinning some of these plants over the next few days to make room for better growth. I will need to prune some of the tomato plants and eventually provide a better support structure for their heavy limbs.

But the most rewarding part? My daughter typically won't touch peas at our house - I have tried the sweet sugar snaps, frozen peas with butter and brown sugar, but she makes a melodramatic gagging sound! But guess what she did in the garden last week? She spotted a pod and asked if she could pull it off the plant and eat it! And of course, I let her. And check out the photo - she practically dove into to eat more pea pods and loved them! Suddenly, all of the hard work seemed worthwhile!

We have also been inviting our seven- and nine-year old neighbors to come over a couple times a week to check out the garden. They walk around, smell the herbs, look for blossoming plants and we have a small sample-size picnic with fresh peas, zucchinis and leaf lettuce.

Although we made a few small mistakes with our first year of gardening, it was a true success. And I encourage you to do the same!

Are you a first-time gardener this year? How does your garden look? Share your experiences with us!

So here is the great (and potentially not-so-great) thing about blogging. Different than personal journals or verbal promises, online blogging holds you accountable for your typed words. At the beginning of 2009, I announced my healthiest intentions for the year, and at the top of my list: Grow a Garden.

I remember laughing out loud when I wrote that goal, because any plants under my care have only withered, never thrived. However, at the end of 2008, I had just finished reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, and her book greatly inspired me to join the “locavore” (local eating) movement in any small way that I could. And so I decided that growing my own vegetable garden is the best way to cut back on wasted food resources and costs!

We were lucky enough to already have a sectioned amount of our yard, perfect size for a small garden, on the west side of our house. And my husband grew up working on farms in Ontario, Canada, and he naturally has a green thumb and a love for the outdoors.

Since I live in Colorado, we have the potential for blizzard conditions in April/May, and so it is always recommended to hold planting until Mother’s Day weekend. So last Sunday afternoon, we started our first vegetable garden. Initially, we turned over the soil several times, added peet moss, turned it again, added peet hummus and organic fertilizer, turned it again, used a garden weasel to break up the clay and large chunks, made 3’ furrows and planted our favorite seeds! I love my green veggies, so we planted one row each of zucchini, peas, lettuce, carrots and broccoli. And yesterday, I went to the farmer’s market and purchased two different varieties of tomato seedlings – I wanted to cheat and make a small head start on the tomato plants.

Our vegetables won’t sprout up for at least a few more weeks, but I am already giddy thinking about a hot July day, grabbing the freshest zucchini to make a beautiful salad or loaf of bread with my daughter. As Kingsolver’s book reminds us, it is important for children to understand where food really comes from (it doesn’t grow in the air conditioned grocery store)! So I hope that my 2-year old will pick up some of our enthusiasm and want to grow her own fruits and veggies someday soon. (As an extra incentive to keep her interested now, we added a kids’ water table next to the garden).

I have attached a photo of our vegetable garden – it is difficult to see where the seeds lie, but I am hoping to inspire even the most intimidated vegetable lover. If I can do it, so can you! And if you can’t find the space to plant a garden in your yard, consider growing some herbs or tomatoes in a large pot this summer.

You might think this article belongs on our Gardenaut website, but I can’t call myself a gardener yet – if all goes well with this first project, I might earn that right in August! And if you're looking for more ideas for helping your child understand food origins, check out this great game Z Recommends recently reviewed.