“Brussels sprouts?” moaned Tigerlily. “I hate Brussels sprouts.”

  “I love them,” said Hyacinth. “My mother always serves them at our elegant dinner parties.”

  She lived in a dollhouse in the mayor’s attic and had a beautiful dining room. Her mother loved to show it off.

  “Good,” said Tigerlily. “You can have them.”

  Next the Scouts dug trenches and carefully planted their seeds. Violet found some sticks and put one at the end of each row with a seed packet on it so they could tell what they had planted where. Then they watered the garden.

  “Good work, Scouts,” said Miss Poppy. “Weekly Scout meetings will continue through the summer, along with your garden commitments. I will make frequent inspections of the garden, so be sure to keep on top of it. And REMEMBER: A garden takes care and patience. You have to WATER the garden. It cannot be too DRY. It cannot be too WET. There will be PESTS. Always wear sunscreen. Keep hydrated. You will get DIRTY. Don’t pick vegetables before they are ready. Do not allow the vegetables to get too big. Beware of POISON IVY. And don’t forget…HAVE FUN!”

  With that, Miss Poppy left the garden.

  The Mouse Scouts gathered their tools and admired their work.

  “What a beautiful garden!” said Violet.

  “It’s nothing but dirt,” said Tigerlily. “When does the growing start?”

  PREPARING AND PLANTING THE GARDEN

  Your garden will be a wonderful spot to spend summer days. Be sure to pick a place that is sunny and has rich soil. There should be water nearby.

  Tools: Recycled plastic forks and spoons make excellent tools for turning over the soil, raking, and weeding. Small combs also come in handy for raking the soil.

  Dirt: Once you have chosen the perfect spot for your garden, you will need to clear it of all weeds, roots, and rocks. Turn the soil over with a fork or spoon to loosen it, then rake smooth, taking care not to compact the soil. Water generously and let the soil rest awhile before planting.

  Planting: Now that your soil is ready, it is time to plant the seeds. Dig a trench with your spoon. Carefully place seeds in the trench one at a time, about an inch apart. When you are done, cover with soil and rake smooth. Water again. Before you know it, you will see sprouts and your garden will be growing!

  It was really too soon for any real work to be done in the garden, but Violet checked on it every day just the same. Each week at the Mouse Scout meeting, she reported on the status. “No growth yet.”

  “Patience!” Miss Poppy would reply. “Keep monitoring it.”

  Violet blushed. She had never felt so important before.

  Then one day, Violet noticed that the garden looked dry. Someone should probably water it, she thought. Then she remembered something she had read in the Mouse Scout Handbook about doing things that needed to be done without having to be told. “Oh. I guess I could water it!”

  Violet looked at the hose. It had been hard enough to lift it with all of the Scouts. She would never be able to do it herself. Maybe Tigerlily could help.

  Violet found Tigerlily sliding down the drainpipe by her house. “There you are!” said Tigerlily. “You’re missing all the fun.”

  Violet shuddered. She was not fond of drainpipes. Spiders liked to hide in them.

  “I need your help watering the garden,” Violet said.

  “I’ll help you tomorrow if you’ll slide with me today,” said Tigerlily. “It’s not like anything is growing yet anyway.”

  Violet wasn’t sure. The garden had looked awfully dry. But maybe Tigerlily was right. Another day probably wouldn’t make any difference. And she had been so busy monitoring the garden, she hadn’t played with Tigerlily in a while.

  “Oh, all right. I guess it can wait one more day,” said Violet as she climbed up the drainpipe. When she got to the top, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and, with a whoosh, slid down the drainpipe. It was more fun than she expected. She climbed up again, and she and Tigerlily spent the rest of the afternoon sliding down the drainpipe. Violet forgot all about the garden.

  When Violet got to the garden the next morning, she saw a few little sprouts lying flat on the ground. “They’re dying of thirst!” she cried. “I knew I should have watered them yesterday. I am a terrible gardener!” Violet sank to the ground and buried her face in her hands. “It’s over before it even began.” She wallowed in misery.

  While Violet was wallowing, Tigerlily arrived, rolling a large plastic water bottle in front of her. She used her claws to make little holes in the plastic. Then she climbed on top of the bottle. Violet stood up and wiped her eyes. “Tigerlily, what are you doing? You said you would help me water the garden. This is no time for games.” Tigerlily just smiled and began to jump up and down on the bottle. Water started squirting out of the sides.

  “Oh,” said Violet. “Nice sprinkler!”

  “Thanks!” said Tigerlily. “It will work even better if we both jump on it.”

  Violet was skeptical. She wanted the garden watered, but jumping on the bottle looked dangerous. Still, Tigerlily did have a point. Violet sighed and climbed up on the bottle and tentatively started jumping. It was sort of scary…and sort of fun. Until the bottle got slippery and she slid off.

  “Ouch!” Violet squeaked. She was about to get mad at Tigerlily when she saw that the little green sprouts were already starting to perk up. Maybe the garden was going to make it after all!

  At the next Mouse Scout meeting, Violet reported that the garden was growing. She swelled with pride as she described their watering efforts, making sure to give Tigerlily credit for her sprinkler invention.

  “Thank you, Violet,” said Miss Poppy. “We all appreciate your hard work, but remember, this is a Mouse Scout garden. Everyone has her own vegetable to look after. In addition, we need to monitor the garden so it’s tidy, weedless, and watered regularly. I’ve made this Duty Chart to make sure that everyone pitches in. Be sure to sign in before going outside.”

  The Scouts each filled in her name and headed out to the garden. Cricket thinned the carrots, and Junebug thinned the radishes. Tigerlily untangled the beanstalks.

  Petunia made stakes for the cherry tomatoes out of coffee stirrers, and Hyacinth dusted every little Brussels sprout. Violet made a trellis out of pencils for the peas. Soon everything was in order. It was beginning to look like a real garden.

  MAKING A DUTY CHART

  One of the great joys of Mouse Scouting is working together on group projects. But working together takes organization! Otherwise, some mice might find themselves doing all of the work while other mice linger on the sidelines. Creating a Duty Chart is a helpful way to divide labor and make sure that each mouse gets a part in the project.

  Making a Duty Chart is easy and fun. First, make a list of all of the tasks that need to be done. Decide whether a task should be handled by a group or by an individual.

  Next, decide on the style of chart that will work best for you. It can be a grid, a wheel, a table, or whatever you like. Creative and eye-catching charts are always fun and help to spark enthusiasm for the task at hand.

  One of the most important aspects of the Duty Chart is to rotate duties so that every Scout has a chance to work at each task. If the Scouts are working in small groups, be sure to rotate partners so that each Scout has a chance to work with somebody new.

  With planning and teamwork, even the most difficult tasks can be completed with success.

  After that, the garden was a hubbub of activity. There was always someone there, weeding or watering or tending to her vegetable. Sometimes Violet missed the peaceful days when she was the only one who visited, but it was nice to see things getting done.

  One day, when Violet got to the garden, it seemed even livelier than usual. Not only were Petunia and Hyacinth busily weeding the cherry tomatoes and the Brussels sprouts, there was other activity as well. Bees were buzzing around the cherry tomato blossoms, ladybugs were feasting on aphids, and earthworms were wriggling beneath her feet. Violet was so surprised that she almost walked into a spiderweb. “Watch where you’re going.

  I’ve been working on this all morning,” called a voice from the web, and Violet jumped when she saw a huge spider. She swallowed and said, “Thank you, everyone, for your hard work.” She had read in her Mouse Scout Handbook that some worms and insects could be very helpful to the garden.

  Violet was just admiring how nicely her peas were climbing the trellis when she noticed that some of the leaves had been chewed. That’s funny, she thought. Maybe it was Cricket? She’ll eat anything. But then she heard a Chomp! Chomp! Chomp!, which didn’t sound like Cricket at all. It was coming from under one of the leaves. Violet took a deep breath and lifted the leaf. There was a weevil, busily eating his way through a pea!

  “Hey!” the weevil shouted. “Do you mind? I’m eating.”

  “Sorry!” Violet squeaked. She ran to find Hyacinth by the Brussels sprouts, but Hyacinth was having problems of her own.

  “What is that?” she asked Violet, pointing to a slug. “It looks like some kind of giant booger.”

  Petunia looked over from the cherry tomatoes and started laughing. But her laugh turned into a squeal as a flea beetle hopped from a tomato leaf and landed on her acorn cap. “Get it off me!” Petunia ran to Hyacinth, and Hyacinth started squealing, too.

  “This garden is infested!” Hyacinth wailed. She raced out of the garden, with Petunia close behind.

  “Wait for me!” Violet tried to run after them, but she tripped on a pea vine and crashed to the ground. She felt something squirming over her nose and opened her eyes to see a grub. She batted at the grub and scrambled to her feet.

  All around her, Violet heard crunching and buzzing. And it seemed that everywhere she looked there were grubs, bugs, and slugs. The garden was being eaten alive. Behind her, she heard something rustling. It sounded bigger than a bug and meaner than a grub. And then that something tapped her on the shoulder.

  Violet screamed!

  She turned around and there was Miss Poppy. “This garden is not a playground,” said Miss Poppy. “I hope you are taking it seriously enough to earn your ‘Sow It and Grow It’ badge.”

  “Yes, Miss Poppy,” Violet squeaked as she ran out of the garden.

  FRIENDS AND ENEMIES OF THE GARDEN

  Garden Friends

  As you work in your garden, remember that you are not the only one who works there. You have many helpers. Below are just a few of your gardening friends!

  Bees: Bees are important friends of the gardener. They pollinate flowers, which enables plants to grow fruits and vegetables. They also use pollen to make honey, so if you see a bee, do not bother her. She is very busy.

  Earthworms: You might think you don’t like worms, but if you want to be a gardener, think again! Earthworms help to create drainage in the garden by making small tunnels in the ground. They eat soil and decaying matter. As these pass through the body, certain chemical reactions take place that help to fertilize the garden.

  Ladybugs: Ladybugs are not only cute but also very helpful in the garden. Ladybugs love to eat aphids. Aphids are small insects that destroy plants by sucking sap from their stems.

  Spiders: Spiders build beautiful webs, but those webs are more than just decoration. Spiders also trap harmful insects in their webs. They get a good dinner, and your plants are saved from the dangers of the insects.

  Garden Foes

  Not everyone in the garden is a friend. At one time or another, you will come across some pests that see your garden as their favorite lunch spot. Below are a few to be on the lookout for.

  Weevils: Weevils are small beetles that love to eat the leaves and flowers of plants. There are thousands of varieties.

  Slugs: Slugs are slimy creatures that are actually snails without shells. They love to eat leaves and flowers. A small slug can eat as much as twice its weight in one night.

  Flea beetles: Flea beetles are tiny beetles that hop like fleas when they are disturbed. If left alone, they enjoy eating the leaves of plants.

  Grubs: Grubs are the larvae of various beetles. They live beneath the soil and feed on roots.

  Violet ran from the garden right into Tigerlily. She had never been so happy to see her friend.

  “Tigerlily, help!” Violet gasped. “Miss Poppy! Oh, it’s horrible! It’s a disaster!”

  “What’s a disaster?” Tigerlily asked. “What’s horrible? Besides Miss Poppy, I mean.”

  “There are bugs!” Violet gasped. “And grubs! And slugs!”

  “Grubs? Bugs? Slugs?” asked Tigerlily. “In the garden?” Tigerlily was intrigued. Gardening was turning out to be much more interesting than she had imagined.

  “This calls for action. Wait here, I’ll be right back,” Tigerlily said.

  In a few minutes, Tigerlily returned, pulling a rattling wagon behind her.

  “What is that?” Violet asked.

  “It’s my emergency wagon. I’ve got all of my handiest tools in here. I’ll take care of those pests in no time!”

  “I hope you’re right.” Violet couldn’t imagine what Tigerlily had in mind, but then Tigerlily was always surprising her.

  When they arrived at the garden, Tigerlily got to work. She pulled a wooden spoon out of the wagon and began batting the tomato leaves with it. Flea beetles went flying. One landed in the spiderweb. “Hey, thanks for lunch!” the spider called out.

  “No problem!” said Tigerlily, swinging the spoon. One beetle clung to a leaf for dear life, but it was too much for him. He fell to the ground and scuttled away.

  Tigerlily handed the spoon to Violet, and Violet started batting the beanstalks. Then Tigerlily took out a toothpick and poked at the slug.

  “Ouch!” said the slug. “What are you doing?”

  “Get off that plant or I’ll poke you again,” Tigerlily said. “But next time will be harder.”

  “No!” cried the slug. “I’m delicate! I’m leaving, I’m leaving! Please don’t poke me!” The slug slithered off as fast as it could (which wasn’t very fast at all), leaving a trail of slime.

  Next, Tigerlily went to the pea vines. She took off her Mouse Scout neck scarf and laid it flat on the ground beneath the vines. Then she gently shook the vines, and the weevils fell to the ground. Tigerlily quickly bundled up her scarf and shook it out at the far end of the playground. “I might need a new scarf!” she said.

  Finally, the garden was free of pests. To be sure none would return, Violet made a sign and posted it at the entry to the garden.

  Tigerlily took a look around. The garden was a little battered, but she couldn’t believe how much it had grown.

  The pea pods were getting plump, there were small green tomatoes, and beans were practically growing before her eyes. Tigerlily took a bean and bit into it. “This is delicious!” she said.

  THE PEST-FREE GARDEN

  Keeping Pests Out of the Garden

  Now that your vegetable garden is growing, suddenly everyone is interested in it. But not everyone is welcome. Below are a few safe and easy tricks for getting rid of unwelcome guests.

  Slugs: Slugs love melon even more than your plants. Leave melon rinds around the garden in the evening and take them away in the morning, slugs and all.

  Slugs will also collect in empty flowerpots.

  Spread pet hair around plants. Slugs hate it!

  Weevils, aphids, and beetles: It may be tedious, but an effective way to get rid of pests on your plants is to pick them off by hand. Be sure to have a pail of soapy water nearby to drop them in.

  You can also place a cloth on the ground and gently bat at plants with a wooden spoon. The pests will fall from the plants onto the cloth. Shake the cloth far away from the garden.

  The very best way to get rid of pests is to let others do the work for you. Turtles, toads, and salamanders love to eat slugs, beetles, and other insects. Make them feel at home by placing small rocks and piles of wood around your garden. Birds also love slugs, bugs, and grubs. Leave a collection of nest-building materials near your garden to encourage them to set up home there.

  The next day, Tigerlily could barely sit through the Mouse Scout meeting. She was excited to get back to the garden. She was ready in case any of the pests had dared to come back. Violet was just relieved that the pest problem had been taken care of.

  But when they finally got to the garden, neither of them was prepared for what they found. It looked as if a tornado had touched down. Carrots had been ripped out of the ground. Empty pea pods were littered everywhere. The sign that Violet had made was pulled up and tossed aside. Someone had taken a bite out of each tomato.

  “This is even worse than before!” moaned Violet. “Instead of getting rid of the pests, we just made them angry.”

 

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