Photo by Samantha Davis The YMCA kid’s garden club worked to plant an apple tree with the University of Minnesota Master Gardeners of Lyon County Tuesday morning in the front lawn.

MARSHALL — Local children in the YMCA kid’s garden club got an opportunity to collaborate with the University of Minnesota Master Gardeners of Lyon County Tuesday morning to plant an apple tree in the front lawn. 

“The Master Gardeners are a volunteer group through the University of Minnesota Extension Service … Our job is to disseminate horticulture information (like) gardening skills, clean water and nearby nature,” said Sharon Hennen of the Master Gardeners. “About four years ago, we collaborated with the YMCA summer camp to teach kids gardening through these outdoor garden plots.” 

A part of the educational kids garden program during summer camp at the YMCA, this year’s big gardening project was planting an apple tree that now sits out front along with the other garden plots of various plants the kids and gardeners have worked on over the summer. 

The kids were welcomed outside and took turns helping to plant the tree with digging, fertilizing and installing, while learning about the process along the way. 

“Just seeing them get their hands in the dirt (is) so fun. Having them have an understanding of being able to grow their own produce. They love taking stuff home, and picking things,” master gardener Jennifer Gregoire-Swedzinski said. “They are just so excited about being able to harvest and do that kind of thing.” 

The tree will now be a part of the program for the following years, as the kids will continue to watch it grow and produce as they care for it. 

Along with the tree planting, the kids rotated around to check in on their other gardens with picking and watering. 

Over the summer, they have planted a handful of plots, also in the front lawn, like an edible flowers garden, pollinator garden, herbs and greens, and vegetables like corn, tomato, onions, beans and squash. 

“(We are) just trying to get kids more involved in being outside and the activities of gardening and understanding composting,” Gregoire-Swedzinski said. “One nice thing that we do is we bring in other people with other expertise. We have composting, we have someone that comes and talks about trees, we do succulent planting … We have other people come in and help us out and share their knowledge.” 

“Sometimes we’ll have insects on the plants, and we can talk about if it’s a beneficial one, and if it’s not a beneficial one,” Gregoire-Swedzinski added. 

The master gardeners and kids garden club also receive local support each summer to make the experiences happen, with Runnings and Ace Hardware offering supplies, and local donations from plant sales. 

The University of Minnesota Lyon County Extension hosts a series of plant sales with proceeds supporting the kid’s club garden, library presentations and other community events. Its next plant sale of perennials, houseplants, bulbs and more takes place on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the fairgrounds next to the Ralco building. 

Those interested in becoming a master gardener member can also seek more information at an open public meeting at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 4, at the Lyon County Library. 

“It’s helpful to have a passion for gardening, environmental (projects) and just watching things grow, whether it’s trees, produce or turf,” Lyon County Master Gardener coordinator Ron Halgerson said. 

The kids helped the gardeners throughout the morning with taking care of their garden beds, while finding the occasional worm and laughing with one another. Upon placing the tree into the ground, they worked together to secure it with more soil. 

“They love planting. They love harvesting, and getting their hands in the dirt … And being able to share with their families when they go home,” Gregoire-Swedzinski said. “I think they really like just the aspect of seeing it change from week-to-week.”