When Kari Warberg climbed into a tractor one spring after a long North Dakota winter, a fresh, little field mouse took offense at her intrusion into its home and scurried right up her leg to complain about it.

Warberg promptly punished it with a douse of perfume she had handy in her purse.

And from there, an idea was born.

Warberg not only took on the entrepreneurial task of building a better mouse trap, she created something that would effectively keep the mice away.

The product,Fresh Cab, doubles as an industrial-strength air freshener and rodent repellent; it's registered with the Environmental Protection Agency as a botancial, biodegradable and totally green repellent, one of the first of its kind.

"It comes from a necessity of me wanting to keep mice out of tractors and me being allergic to mothballs,"Warberg said.

And it's now being sold at 5,000 stores nationwide, including more than 700 Tractor Supply Co. stores.

Tractor Supply Co., based in Minot, recently agreed to take Fresh Cab national, a move that Warberg is particularly proud of.

"Until Tractor Supply, we really hadn't broken into national (markets)," Warberg said.

Warberg has been in business since 1993, but seriously began to think about the product in 1995; from there, she attributes a lot of her success to help from Pride of Dakota and Marketplace for Entrepreneurs, as well as her employees.

"With their help, I was able to turn my fear into courage, and my idea into one with purpose and passion,"she said.

North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson said Warberg's business, Crane Creek Gardens, based in Stanley, is good example of a successful North Dakota business venture.

"It's kind of fun to watch this company grow and watch Kari grow,"Johnson said.

Crane Creek Gardens began as a market garden, where Warberg grew and sold organic produce. She then began to grow and market dried florals, and later moved on to the rodent repellent and other air fresheners.

Now the company employs about 90 employees, 80 of whom are developmentally disabled workers.

Warberg said the tasks necessary for creating the products are a perfect fit for disabled workers, helping fill her needs and their needs, as well.

The new, nationwide contract with TSCwill create five more jobs in the company, too, Warberg said.

(Reach reporter Crystal Reid at 250-8261 or crystal.reid@;bismarcktribune.com.)