Girl Scouts show off green thumbs, plant Dunkirk’s ‘Victory Garden’ Posted on July 6, 2022 0 Young gardenersDunkirk Girl Scouts who helped to plant a community garden were (from left) Jaclynn Shirk, Sawyer Weinrauch, Kaitlyn Sexton, Jules Conley and Sydney Byers. One of the Dunkirk leaders, Shirley Green, was asked by Mayor Terry Cramer if the Girl Scouts would like to plant a community garden. They said they would love to. So the girls gathered on Saturday morning, June 25 to show off their green thumbs and plant a community garden behind the community building in Dunkirk. Green explained to the girls that it is similar to when she was their age as she helped her mother and grandparents plant a Victory Garden during World War II. A Victory Garden was planted during very challenging times then. As now times can be challenging also for many so this project is really a great opportunity to help their neighbors. The plants and seeds were donated by Adam and Tracy Paxton. Adam even came to direct the girls in their planting. He gave them many pointers in growing a garden. They planted tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, corn and beans. After planting the tomatoes they placed cages on them so they would grow straight and tall. For the beans and cucumbers they placed a wire fence for them to grow on. The really fun part was learning how the Indians planted corn. He instructed them to place a large circle in the soil and they were to throw handfuls of corn into the circle and cover with soil. This should be interesting to see how that turns out. Sunflowers were also planted to aid in pollinating the plants for good growth. The garden will be tended by the girls and other community members. They are very appreciative of the opportunity to not only aid their community but also to learn how to garden effectively. They are also working on a special gardening badge their leader found online. The girl would like to thank Mr. and Mrs. Paxton for all their help in this project. The Girl Scout gardeners were Sydney Byers, Jyles Conley and Sawyer Weinhauch from Troop 20646 along with leader, Charlette Wilson. From Troop 20392 were Jaclynn Shirk and her father and Kaitlyn Sexton along with leaders Shirley Green and Shelby Sexton.
