In LITTLE RED — A New Musical!, Little Red Riding Hood is bound and determined to get her merit badge in gardening and her grandmother is all set to show her how. But encouraging our own little tykes to dig in the dirt isn’t always so easy. Here are a few tips that may help explain the importance of home gardening to your young horticulturist.

1. PLANTS ARE HUNGRY TOO
Much like kids, plants need to eat a healthy diet of food. Plants take in the carbon dioxide and expel fresh, clean oxygen for us to breathe, just like when we eat and go to the bathroom. The more plants you put in your garden, the more oxygen you are able to share.

2. GARDENS CLEAN OUR WATER
There is a lot of water just beneath the earth’s surface called groundwater. While it seems that water would be dirty since it’s, well, in the dirt, plants actually clean the water as it moves through the soil and filter out bad things that might make us sick like chemicals and bacteria.

3. GROWING VEGGIES REDUCES POLLUTION
When you grow your own garden, you reduce the amount of fruits and vegetables you buy at the grocery store. But how does that reduce bad things in the air? When you grow food at home, you reduce the need to transport vegetables from the farm to a store. Fewer trucks and trains mean less pollution and a healthier planet.

4. FLOWERS & VEGGIES SHELTER WILDLIFE
Just like Little Red befriend the not-so-bad wolf and provides him with an alternative to being relocated to the Kallaho Wilderness, flower and vegetable gardens can protect all sorts of wildlife. From birds and bees to worms and white-tail deer, all types of bugs and animals may find a home in your garden.

5. FEED YOUR FAMILY
Well, we all get hungry, don’t we? What better way to have a tasty treat on hand than growing it in your own back yard. Plus, you have less trash, chemical-free food and even less noise because plants “cushion” your house from sound.

Encourage your children to earn their own merit badges when they learn to garden like Grandma, Little Red and the Wolf.

US Scouts Gardening Merit Badge
Boy Scout Gardening Merit Badge Requirements
Girl Scouts Junior Gardener Badge Activity