Where next for the ‘Mama’ franchise? The lady’s all cooked-out and the housework doesn’t look very appealing. So how about a spot of gardening instead?

Hey, it could work. We scoffed at Cooking Mama before we actually played the game and fell for her unlikely culinary charms. So Gardening Mama for DS could be just as compelling and slyly educational as its predecessor. Let’s hope so, anyway.

Okay, so it won’t take a genius to predict what’s in store here - the DS Stylus standing in for all manner of gardening implements as Mama digs, plants, feeds, weeds and harvests a colourful array of fruits and vegetables. There are 28 varieties to nurture, the prettier/trickier ones unlocking as assorted challenges are completed. Ornamental items to perk-up your patch - swings, benches, gnomes and the like - are found in the same way. Gardening Mama also boasts a selection of fun minigames and the facility to host four-player wireless gameplay - just the thing to get your garden party started.

And that’s about all there is to know right now, except for the reassuring fact that the game is developed by the very same team responsible for the Cooking Mama games - the lazily-named Cooking Mama Ltd.

Gardening Mama blossoms on DS from May 1st. You can rest assured be all over it like compost!