Junior school Ysgol Egsob Morgan in Denbighshire, Wales, has run an Eco Club for five years. Pupils grow a wide array of vegetables and have planted over 800 trees on the school site.
Teacher Richard Hatwood told us that all activities are led by the children and they are represented on the Eco Committee. They put forward their ideas to develop the school garden.
In recent years they have fundraised to have a new school pond developed, have a new allotment built and launch a chicken project.
The chicken project has been a huge success and the children are now offering their eggs to parents and guardians for a small donation. This helps pupils cover their costs and even purchase additional chickens.
Ysgol Egsob Morgan is a five star RHS school, and so has a commitment to coaching. The older children teach the younger ones how to tend the land, look after the animals and harvest the crops.
This year the children displayed some of the vegetables they had grown at Tatton Flower Show, and came in second place at the judging. Richard says they were inspired by the other displays and have started entering lots of competitions.
The students also love to take their gardening out into the community and have built a new wildlife garden alongside the river Elwy.
Richard says “Students don’t just turn up for Eco Club once a week for an hour – they come to school at 8am to look after their gardens, they use break times, lunchtimes and most evenings after school to garden too.”
“Developing our Eco Club has done wonders to encourage all children in learning about the outdoors.”
Ysgol Egsob Morgan has won the Cultivation School prize – £2000 of National Garden Gift Vouchers.
Judges were impressed by the variety of activities that the children do, and their enthusiasm about taking gardening out to the community. They liked the focus of sustainability in the Eco Club, and the presence of a pupil-led committee.
They also hailed it as an example of how school gardening can be used to teach children about the outdoors in general, rather than simply growing plants.
Judges also acknowledged Richard’s enthusiasm – he sent regular updates from Eco Club and engaged with the campaign online.
Congratulations to everyone at Ysgol Egsob Morgan!
Residents in Annie Street, Salford did not have front gardens – the space at the front of the houses was occupied by a concrete alleyway.
Bit by bit, they started planting up the outside, and have now adopted the entire passage and made it into makeshift front gardens.
They have planted fruit trees and shrubs and installed metal arches to give the area some structure. And they have an abundance of pots, planters, raised beds, hanging baskets, seating areas and water features.
They use recycled objects as plant containers too, giving the street a personal touch.
The neighbours are a mix of ages, and everyone joins in. One of the resident’s grandsons, who has autism, loves nothing better than getting stuck in with his spade.
Resident Karen Pearson says “We just do it because we all love gardening. We are just as enthusiastic about our alleyway as other people are about their front gardens.”
“When friends visit, they are impressed by how much we have crammed into the space!”
The street won the top prize of £10,000 of National Garden Gift Vouchers. It has been crowned the Cultivation Street 2014 Overall Winner, and the Best Front Gardens in the UK.
Cultivation Street judges were impressed by their use of recycling and how much there was to see. They noted that the alleyway was full of a variety of plants and containers, giving residents and passers-by plenty to enjoy.
They also loved how the residents had made something so good out of nothing.
Karen and her neighbours were delighted by the news that they had won. “We just can’t believe it! We keep looking at the vouchers, and we’re so proud.”
They plan to spend the vouchers on materials to smarten up their alleyway, and buy lights so it is all beautifully lit at night.
Congratulations to everyone on Annie Street – a deserved win!
Conifers are hardy evergreen trees and shrubs that suit any garden. According to a HTA survey, almost a third of garden owners have a conifer, so they are more popular than you might think.
They come in a huge range of shapes, sizes and textures, and the colour can be anything from yellow or light green through to dark green, blue, grey and even bronze and purple.
Yew, thuja, gingko, juniper and Chamaecyparis are all good conifer varieties. Use them as a green backdrop for flowering plants, or as standalone structures to add height in the garden.
Where should I plant them?
Dwarf conifers are good for containers, and larger shrubs and trees make good hedging or garden features.
They are happy in any soil, in a sunny or shady site. But they don’t like compacted soil or waterlogging. Make sure to water newly established plants, but mature plants need little maintenance.
Did you know?
Christmas trees are a conifer! Pine trees are a very popular evergreen conifer.
