Brownies have been more than prepared – to help their town win a blooming gold medal.

The 28-strong team of youngsters from the 1st Dartmouth Brownies have been busy planting up hanging baskets in readiness for the town's bid for a Britain in Bloom triumph.

They went into action in the town's Butter Market – filling the planters with compost and then planting them up with begonia and lobelia plants.

By the time they had finished they had completed a total of 30 baskets – one for each of the Brownies and three completed by their adult supporters – for this year's Dartmouth in bloom effort

The Brownies' Little Owl Stella Head said afterwards: 'They thoroughly enjoyed themselves.'

Dartmouth has been regularly winning regional bloom awards for the 33 years the town has been competing in the Britain in Bloom competitions.But this year the town has been invited to compete in the national section of the competition for the coastal towns with a population up to 12,000.

Dartmouth in Bloom committee member Kathy Stansfield said the Brownies had been invited to help out as part of the bloom team's bid to involve the local community in this year's efforts.

She said the bloom group had some 90 hanging baskets which need to be planted up this year.

And she said that the town's Scouts were now anxious to do their bit for the blooming championship bid.