Introducing Tammy Mayrend, Gardening Contributor

As a new blogger for the site, I wanted to introduce myself a bit more. My interests are pretty broad and always include my children, however here on the Prime Parents Club, I’ll be blogging about being outdoors in the garden!

Gardening has always been a passion. I have very early memories of the grandparents taking me into the garden and teaching me about preparing, planting and harvesting all of nature’s bounty. They even taught us that you (shhh!) don’t need to wash the fruit or veggies first so long as you wipe of most of the dirt! Somewhere there is a photo of me in the my diaper, covered in dirt from head-to-toe, munching on a carrot just pulled from the ground. Both sets of grandparents had huge multi-acre gardens, and both of my grandmothers were fantastic cooks, bakers and preservation experts. I consider myself lucky to have been taught by the best.

Now, as a parent, I love the garden even more. Every home I have lived in had a garden, even if it had to be in patio pots. My criteria for growing plants is that it has to be tasty or a favorite, interesting, or serve a specific purpose. Recently, I have started foraging from nature too, augmenting our plates with tasty, new ideas.

I’ve taught my children, now 6 and 8, about baking, canning, gardening and foraging. We enjoy making our own maple syrup, picking whatever wild fruits we find, looking for spring ramps and spring and fall mushrooms, and gardening!

I have several “types” of gardens around the house. A shade garden, butterfly garden, fruit/veggie garden, weed garden (oh wait, that’s our lawn that I am slowing changing to more gardens), landscaping out front and what I like to call “my-husband-wouldn’t-mow-so-I-dropped-drought-tolerant-plants-there-to-prevent-a-nasty-lawn” garden. I suppose it’s better called “a rain garden.” I also live on a retention pond and have started to beautify the edges of it as best I can. Otherwise, I have to look directly out my doorway at the large drainage tube protruding from the water. This year I am considering adding fruit trees somewhere, possibly utilizing my deck space for planters full of food, and also having the kids plant a “pizza” garden.

Content that you can also expect is planting tips, garden preparation ideas, interesting thoughts on how to use what you’ve harvested, and some foraging ideas to get you out there. Anything goes for me, and I look forward to getting to know all of you better.

If you have a gardening question you’d like seen answered I’d love to help too, just send me your question with specifics on your scenario!

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[author_info]About the Author

Tammy is an avid gardener and novice forager who likes to preserve her efforts the way God intended. When at all possible she enjoys finding new things while tromping around in the woods or garden and loves to include her children in her gardening endeavors. [/author_info][/author]

Tags: gardening, Tammy Mayrend

Category: Features, Gardening