CORNELIUS – Scouts in Troop 72, based at Bethel Presbyterian Church, have been busy since April planting a 6,000-square-foot vegetable garden, and they are donated all their produce to Loaves & Fishes food pantries at the Ada Jenkins Center in Davidson and Huntersville United Methodist Church, as well as Angels and Sparrows Soup Kitchen in Huntersville.

The Scouts already have delivered 12 bushels of spinach, lettuce and greens to Loaves & Fishes and 400 pounds of vegetables in the past two weeks. Scouts are harvesting tomatoes, squash, peppers, cucumbers, green beans, sweet potatoes, zucchini, watermelons and cantaloupe.

Including two weekend workdays to plant the garden and frequent watering and other care, the Scouts, their leaders and parents already have contributed more than 400 service hours. The troop installed a low-flow, drip-irrigation system, collects water in a system of rain barrels and mulched the plants to reduce the plants’ water needs.

Troop 72’s Scoumaster is Rick Monroe.