|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 7, 2007 8:26:39 GMT 1
I have received my prize garden vouchers and they have helpfully come in £25 X4. I am going to buy 1 voucher's worth of plants for school so I want to pick your brains for suggestions. The criteria really is that the plants should ideally flower any time before the long summer break or still going in September, that they should be fairly robust (160 pairs of feet and balls everywhere  ), and that should have some kind of teaching value eg easy method of propagation, wildlife value or some unusual feature to interest kids. They can be herbaceous or shrubby but if annual it would be better if they selfseed freely. Just as background info, there are several areas I can plant around school so there is a variety of habitat. Some will be raised beds, others larger areas between paths. Generally the soil is pretty compacted and sandy - sigh. And this is Norfolk so it's pretty arid in summer. I want to go to the GC with a fairly specific list so I don't get carried away or confused! Looking forward to your advice - thanks! |
|
|
|
Post by plocket on Feb 7, 2007 10:32:36 GMT 1
Oh you are such a nice person.
How about getting some Verbena Bonariensis - they look lovely and attract insects of course, but they should self seed and the children can learn about taking cuttings - if you have the patience! They flower in the autumn so the children should be back after the school holidays.
And hardy geraniums? The kids can then learn about cutting back the plants to encourage new growth.
Some evergreens will probably be useful too - heucheras are nice but don't go for the really trendy pale ones because some are a bit temperamental.
Bulbs are always good and are obviously different from seeds - the children will then learn that not everything has a seed! Tulips flower later in the year than say snowdrops and daffodils.
And I'd also suggest that you grow some herbs - parsley should self-seed; rosemary and lavender are hardy and evergreen so you will always have some structure in your garden. I was going to suggest strawberries but they might miss out on harvesting the fruits - they would see how the plant self-propagates though.
I hope these ideas start you off 4P.
|
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 7, 2007 13:15:38 GMT 1
I'm not a good person - just easily affected by guilt!
The Verbena bon. is a must - brilliant idea. And strawberries I'd already decided to grow in pots so the kids can take them home. I'm hoping to be able to plant a fragrant, quiet garden dedicated to herbs so Lavender and Rosemary will be there. Hardy Geraniums is a good idea too, they would look nice with dark Heucheras in between, as a path edging, woudn't they? Thanks Plocket. XX
|
|
|
|
Post by plocket on Feb 7, 2007 13:32:46 GMT 1
Oooh yes geraniums and heucheras - lovely! Do watch out for vine weevils though because they are partial to heucheras! Hebes are good reliable hardy evergreens too and come in varying sizes depending on how much space you want to fill. Fennel is great for insects too, and propagates very easily from seeds - the kids will soon learn about weeding with fennel!!! And of course it smells! And you could do your own sunflower trial - each child can grow a seed and see who's gets the biggest. Oooh I do hope you get lots of enjoyment out of this.
Will you be able to get the children to write and draw about what they've done? It would make such a lovely book for other children to read.
How big is the garden 4P? It sounds like quite an undertaking. And do you know yet how many children are volunteering, or is it going to be a class thing?
|
|
|
|
Post by sweetleaf on Feb 7, 2007 13:36:04 GMT 1
Sunflowers, sedum, .buddleia? cotoneaster is popular with bees, low maintenance and easy to grow, and can be trained in any shape California poppies once sown sow themselves,attract insects, and the seed pods can be collected, my children enjoyed that. ;D
How about "wildflower mix" of seed ?
Love in a mist is very tactile has interesting seedpods and can be resown by the children again and again.
|
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 7, 2007 14:02:54 GMT 1
Well, the area which is officially my club garden is quite long (about 2/3 classrooms length) and about 15ft wide but it has a large existing shrub rose bed, about 20ft is in the deep shade of very large beech trees and the remainder has a path to the school sheds across. I suppose the actual planting space is about 20 X 15 ft. I have the narrow beds underneath the classrooms I can replant if I want though. The wildlife area is quite large - 70' X 40' approx - and is fenced and hedged with a large old crab apple tree in it. There is a potentially quite large area for the herb garden which will have seats in it too although the plants will be along the edges in borders. I want that quite formally structured. I will have at least four 60"diameter hexagonal raised beds to put aroundabout and there will be odd bits of borders along the school buildings which are at present full of berberis which I can underplant. I plan to gradually work my way round all the trees making beds underneath them with lots of bulbs in. I am strictly not allowed to subvert the playing fields and sporty bits (boo) but everywhere else is negotiable! I have a regular list of about 30 kids who are all very keen but I'm sure as we get more organised others will want to come along. The only real shortage is with volunteer adult helpers (as usual). It's always the same parents who do all the voluntary stuff. I had to introduce a rota last year so we could give all the kids who wanted to a chance to garden. I hope that once we get the greenhouse up and the ponds built more adults will get interested.
Sedums in a big group would be nice covered in butterflies wouldn't they? Mmm, this is fun! The other thing I'm very keen to get going is for each child to make their own mini pot garden so some of the vouchers will be spent on seeds we can sow in plugs so they have a good selection to choose from.
I love Love in a Mist - lots of that definitely! And a loooong border of lots of different sunflowers in front of the school sheds too.
Keep em coming......thanks!
|
|
|
|
Post by plocket on Feb 7, 2007 14:49:48 GMT 1
Oh wow it's bigger than I imagined, and you already have some lovely ideas. It's funny about parent volunteers isn't it? A gardening club is something I'd love to be involved in but knowing LPs school it would be dumped on the parents and then the school wash their hands of it. There's no way I'm going to be suggesting it but if one were set up I'd love to help.
Back to your garden - the idea of little pot gardens is lovely - are you going to ask parents to provide seeds? I'm sure people on here would be willing to hand over left-over seeds for you too if you want them - I know I would. I'm not sure getting unused pots to you would be as easy for us boarders though!
While you are at it, how about setting up a compost bin? LPs school give the younger children fruit at morning break and there's always apple cores and banana skins left over. If your school do that they could put even some of the scraps into your compost bin along with peelings - and when the grass is cut you could ask whoever does the job to put some of the clippings into your bin too. You'd soon have lovely compost, and it's also another good recycling thing for the kids to learn.
If you want plant ideas for the garden could you get some plant catalogues together and taken them in for the children to look at? I'm sure they've got ideas about what they would like to grow.
|
|
|
|
Post by cheerypeabrain on Feb 7, 2007 20:57:11 GMT 1
You could have a few marigolds...easy to sow, fairly reliable and brightly coloured...they look like 'proper' flowers as well. They'd be flowering before the summer break and after the break the children could collect the seeds.
Teasels are nice too...I'm growing them for the first time this year and dunno much about them, but they 'd go well in the wildlife area.
|
|
|
|
Post by snowy on Feb 7, 2007 21:37:57 GMT 1
What about a thornless blackberry bush or maybe a dwarf apple or pear tree? The children can see the fruit developing from flower through to ripening. Then they can pick and taste!
S x
|
|
|
|
Post by alicat on Feb 8, 2007 0:50:17 GMT 1
Oooh yes geraniums and heucheras - lovely! Do watch out for vine weevils though because they are partial to heucheras! Hebes are good reliable hardy evergreens too and come in varying sizes depending on how much space you want to fill. Fennel is great for insects too, and propagates very easily from seeds - the kids will soon learn about weeding with fennel!!! And of course it smells! And you could do your own sunflower trial - each child can grow a seed and see who's gets the biggest. Oooh I do hope you get lots of enjoyment out of this. Will you be able to get the children to write and draw about what they've done? It would make such a lovely book for other children to read. How big is the garden 4P? It sounds like quite an undertaking. And do you know yet how many children are volunteering, or is it going to be a class thing? - HAVE you been reading my mind today! I have been thinking about this, and you have mentioned almost all the plants I was going to say. - Humfff? The only one you haven't mentioned is Pholmis Fruticosa ( Jerusalem sage.) - It might not be the best plant in the world but it does like sandy soil, flowers before the end of July and is easily propergated. It is also a hardy shrub for the winter. Also pyracantha ( maybe a bit spikey but the birds love it in winter) and cotonester. ( Also for the birds in winter) Both also give some colour at this time of year. Ooo and Viburnum Tinus - Eve Prince for winter interest. Which you can layer for a different type of propergation. - Can't think of any others at the mo. A. x Wishing you all the best in this wonderful adventure.  |
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 8, 2007 8:38:04 GMT 1
Thanks Ladies..I really do welcome all your thoughts - it's easy to get tunnel vision with something like this - hadn't thought of J.Sage, for example - good idea. Cheers Alicat! Marigolds are a definite too and I have a tray of teasels waiting for the Wildlife area. I am slightly worried about yours Cheery as they do spread like stink and are quite difficult to eradicate........! I have planned for a small orchard, Snowy. There is a selection of large shrubs dotted about which are pruned ruthlessly whenever the county 'gardeners' visit, so they never manage to flower or fruit and are mainly used for hiding behind and pushing other kids into so I'm going to saw them down and replant with apple, pears and almonds. The county team of hackers and loppers are terrible! Eg, I built a leaf bin in Autumn near to the massive conkers trees and the next day went in to find the county van parked next to it but all the leaves in huge bags on the back ready to be taken away (not composted!). They wouldn't put them in the leaf bin.....shocking eh? Luckily the kids did the next lot of leaves and now it's nearly full ! Plocket - why don't you see if anyone on the PTA is interested in a Gardening Club? It doesn't have to be on my scale - that's my fault entirely - got carried away (as usual). |
|
|
|
Post by sweetleaf on Feb 8, 2007 8:44:00 GMT 1
Morning 4P I do think thats shocking, I bet they dont get composted but dumped, I have my OH trained to pick up bags of leaves left out for the dustman, in those special garden waste bags... the leaf bin at the lottie is also full.  |
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 8, 2007 8:50:34 GMT 1
Morning Angelcake! B***y county gardeners - thugs I call'em! Are you snowed in? Hope you have a fun day building snowmen (do some rude bits for me...) Ooops wrong thread....  |
|
|
|
Post by sweetleaf on Feb 8, 2007 8:52:53 GMT 1
Im planning a small one for the freezer! A tradition from when the kids were small, and couldnt be out there......... they still ask me where my snowman is ;D
|
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 8, 2007 9:00:15 GMT 1
|
|
|
|
Post by plocket on Feb 8, 2007 10:06:54 GMT 1
Oooh yes geraniums and heucheras - lovely! Hebes are good reliable hardy evergreens too and come in varying sizes depending on how much space you want to fill. Fennel is great for insects too, and propagates very easily from seeds - the kids will soon learn about weeding with fennel!!! And of course it smells! And you could do your own sunflower trial - each child can grow a seed and see who's gets the biggest. - HAVE you been reading my mind today! I have been thinking about this, and you have mentioned almost all the plants I was going to say. - Humfff? It's official - I'm a mindreader!!!!! Shame I wasn't one when I was a PA though!  |
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 8, 2007 16:19:36 GMT 1
So what am I thinking Plocket.....?
|
|
|
|
Post by plocket on Feb 8, 2007 16:46:01 GMT 1
You're thinking "If I go out there now I'll probably get lost in a snowdrift"!!!!! ;D ;D ;D
|
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 8, 2007 17:17:16 GMT 1
Not even close!
|
|
|
|
Post by plocket on Feb 8, 2007 17:28:12 GMT 1
Phew!!! "Thank goodness we've finished the snowman - we can warm up now"  |
|
|
|
Post by debbiem on Feb 10, 2007 17:45:15 GMT 1
A late entry here - what about Cytisus? According to D.G.Hessayon they like poor, sandy soil....the RHS Encyclopaedia doesn't exactly agree with this but says they like poor acid soil amongst a load of other soil types! Don't think anyone's mentioned these yet, sorry to anyone who has!  |
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 10, 2007 18:52:28 GMT 1
Thanks Mrs B - that's going on my list.
|
|
|
|
Post by The witch on Feb 10, 2007 19:31:20 GMT 1
|
|
|
|
Post by 4pygmies on Feb 10, 2007 19:36:23 GMT 1
We haven't done a test yet but I think probably not acid, The witch. Just very thin and sandy like mine up the road.
|
|
|
|
Post by The witch on Feb 11, 2007 10:21:37 GMT 1
There is an area of woodland a short walk down the road from me, the soil is very sandy too, but there are an amazing amount of Rhododendrons growing very well throughout the wood. ;D
|
|
), and that should have some kind of teaching value eg easy method of propagation, wildlife value or some unusual feature to interest kids. They can be herbaceous or shrubby but if annual it would be better if they selfseed freely.
