How do you plant a three year old?

Well, I had this grand idea to have the kids help me in the garden so they could take some ownership in the growing of vegetables. After finally getting Gracie, Braden and Tanner to start making four different hills to plant Zucchini in (and keeping Gracie from screaming when Braden put dirt outside her circle that she continued to trace in the dirt, and redirecting Tanner when he took dirt from the hill...) we decided to plant. I firmed the dirt around the seeds and started visiting with my neighbor. Then I look and find Braden winding up with a GIANT kick to the mounds of zucchini we had just planted. Dirt flies EVERYWHERE and as I run to give him a little talking to he tries to run away by going through the broccoli and green beans I planted last weekend. ARGH. It will be amazing if anything continues to grow.

I have a green thumb

So it seems anyway. I was really stressing because I planted peas and then they didn't sprout and they didn't sprout, etc. Right as I was ready to call vegetable gardening quits, I walked through the garden and saw little green weeds all in a row! YAHOO. We now have lettuce (Ed Hume Black seeded Simpson) and Super Sugar Snap Edible Pod, pole peas that have sprouted (planted about a month ago) and I have just recently planted butternut squash starts from inside (Ed Hume seeds), tomato starts (bumble bee, steak, and sugar hybrid) as well as two varieties of carrots (Ed Hume Carrot-Imperator and Ed Hume Hybrid), Green Beans- Blue Lake Bush (Ed Hume), and Broccoli Waltham 29 (Ed Hume). Herbs: Garlic starts from Fred Meyer, Peppermint, and Lemon Variegated Thyme. I have to record the varieties so that I don't have to try and remember for next year.These are my two little rows with our homemade markers. Artwork by Braden

I have found this whole gardening thing to be a wonderful experience. Braden loves watering the garden with us and I love working in the dirt and seeing things grow and flourish. I have to also brag about my wildflowers that are coming up around my fruit trees. Ed Hume wildflowers for the Pacific NW also gave me a scare because it took them about 1.5 months before I saw anything coming up.
This will be heads of lettuce sometime (with some slug bait)


Still to plant:

Lilly Miller Cucumber- Homemade Pickles Planted 6/11 ish

Ed Hume Zucchini- Jackpot Hybrid Bush Planted 5/20

Ed Hume Cucumber- Muncher Planted 6/11 ish

Potato starts from the Sjaviks Planted 6/11 ish

Onion starts from the grange (Walla Wallas and sweet onion) Planted 5/27

and if there is still room: Ed Hume Pumpkin- Howden Ideal Jack O Lantern Type Planted 6/30 YIKES!

Also planted Artichokes 6/11 ish

Parsnips 6/11 ish