Lulu Bell and the Magical Garden Read Online Free Page B

should go.
    Dad had loaded the wheelbarrow into the back of the car, along with rakes, shovels and trowels. Lulu helped Mum and Dad unpack the car. Gus and Rosie filled up watering cans.
    â€˜Hi, Molly! Hi, Zac!’ called Lulu to her friends. Soon Lauren, Max, Daniel and Amira arrived with their families, too. Everyone was wearing gloves and carrying gardening tools.

    A group of parents set to work building four raised timber garden beds. After each square bed was built, it was carefully put in place. Lulu and her friends lined the bottom of the garden beds with a thick layer of wet newspaper.
    On top of that they put a layer of compost, soil and cow manure, all mixed together.
    â€˜Make sure you spread the soil out evenly,’ said Millie.
    Lulu evened the mixture out with a rake. Then Rosie and Gus helped spread straw mulch over the top.

    Other families worked to dig up the side beds for the shrubbery and hedges. It was hard, hot work. Soon everyone was grubby and sweaty.
    When all the garden beds were built and filled, it was time to lay down the paving stones. Millie had designed them to be laid in a hopscotch pattern. The four hopscotch paths formed a cross leading into the centre of the garden. Mum had already painted numbers on each of the pavers. Rosie and Miawere the first kids to try out the new hopscotch path.
    Rosie beamed at Mia. ‘They’re much better than the old ones.’
    â€˜We’re going to plant sweet-scented thyme all around the pavers,’ said Millie, ‘so that when you play, you’ll be able to smell the beautiful scent of the herbs.’
    â€˜Now that’s really cool,’ said Mia.
    The timber benches that Gumpa had built throughout the week were set in place near the shrubbery. Amira and her family had painted a set of wooden bird houses, and they hung them up to dangle from the branches of the fruit trees.

    Dad helped Millie arrange the trellises for the tomatoes and the beans. Some of the trellises were shaped like teepees. Each teepee was made up of ten tall bamboo poles tied together at the top, with an opening at the front.
    â€˜These are going to be very special green cubbyhouses,’ explained Millie, as she tied the tops with string. ‘Bean runners will grow up the poles to create thick, leafy walls. They will be the best spots to hide in, and you can eat the beans from the walls!’
    When the worm farms were set in place, Lulu looked around. Although she had seen Millie’s plan for the garden, she hadn’t really been able to picture it until now. There was a round bed in the centre. Around this were four neat square timber beds, separated by pavers. These were bordered on four sides by wide, rectangular garden beds.
    Lulu felt a surge of pride. ‘It looks wonderful,’ she said.
    Millie leant on her shovel. ‘Just you wait until the plants are in,’ she said.‘Then it will really be gorgeous. And I still have a little surprise for Rosie.’
    â€˜A surprise for me?’ squealed Rosie. ‘What is it?’
    â€˜Wait and see!’ said Millie, with a grin.

Chapter 10
A Very Magical Garden
    â€˜Okay,’ called Millie, when lunch was finished, ‘let’s get planting. We still have lots to do.’
    â€˜Yay,’ said Lulu. ‘Where do we start?’
    â€˜Can I plant the thyme for the hopscotch path?’ asked Rosie.
    â€˜Of course,’ said Millie. ‘But we might leave that for a little later. Let’s start with the strawberry patch.’
    All the plants had been delivered that morning. They were lined up in the shade outside the hall. There were fruit trees, vegetable seedlings, herbs, shrubs and flowers. Families had also brought in cuttings and plants from their own gardens.

    Millie divided everyone into teams to plant different areas of the garden. The scented shrubbery was made up of lavender, rosemary, daisies, gardenias and geraniums. There was a narrow,