Adventures in Gardening

Starring: Muddy Shue

It started off like any Spring season; with the blooming of the forsythia Muddy Shue felt the urge to till the ground, plant some seeds and coerce her man, Steeltoe Boot, to build more garden boxes. Once she had tucked the seeds into their garden beds, Muddy Shue thought this season would be like any other; just pop some corn, sit back and watch them grow. But this was going to be a Spring to remember. The trouble began when Muddy Shue received a phone call from her friend warning that their archenemy Jack Frost would be coming. "No way, it's May 18th, 8 days past the frost date!" was Shue's response. But come he would, so Shue gathered up the kids and armed with sheets, buckets, sour cream containers and ironically enough, the sled, they went to battle against Jack Frost.

Although the event gave the appearance that they had entered the "shady" part of town, the seedlings (and kids) were safe in their beds and they all awoke to the sun shining and the knowledge that they beat Jack Frost.

Next came the run-in with Cut Worm. Unfortunately, not all the seedlings survived this nemesis, but with some careful digging to discover to lair of the enemy and some pressure from Steeltoe Boot, Cut Worm was eradicated from the premises.

However, just as Muddy Shue was counting her victories, another villian came on the scene: the elusive Jane Doe. As Shue discovered, masked by gracefulness and beauty, this one creature could do more damage to newly blossoming pumpkin plants in one night than Cut Worm could do in a lifetime. Rather than sing the Blues, Muddy Shue went into action. The weapon of choice? A scarecrow. Shue once again enlisted the armies of her four children to implement this plan.

Some old clothes, old straw, an old lampshade, second hand silverware and voila! the meanest, baddest, bluest scarecrow you ever saw.
Unfortunately, the scarecrow met with Jack Frost's sidekicks Thunderstorm and Hail on his first night. Fortunately, there are plans to revive him and now he has a name (thanks to a friend's suggestion): Lazarus. So ends the Adventures in Gardening, part 1. We hope you enjoyed the show. Stay tuned for more Adventures in Gardening as Muddy Shue fights the notorious Tomato Blight and Japanese Beetle!