Our garden is not just for our school, it is also used for the local community. We grow vegetables, herbs and fruit and we also have a salad bank. I like the garden because it is fun to go outside and get stuck in!
Geoff, Former Head of the Garden Committee, 6th class
In recent news….
January in the garden
All of the children in all of the classes saved and planted wildflowers. It is so cold at the moment, we grew them in the polytunnel. In spring, we will bring them out and plant them in the garden. The flower that you can see below is called the snowdrop, we love this flower because it reminds us that spring is coming.
There have been a lot of storms the past while, and we all know that they did a lot of damage! Two of our big trees fell down, but thanks to the parents that came to help clear them away. Fallen trees are very important habitat for minibeasts, so we are hoping to make a bug hotel out of them. Watch this space!
November in the garden
It has been a really busy month in the garden, as usual! The children are helping the little birds by providing them with food, as it can be harder for them to find worms when the ground is hard with frost.
We also have planted acorns, after carrying out a floating and sinking experiment on them. The oak tree provides a habitat for more animals and insects than any other native tree.
We were really lucky to have Gordon Kelly come and talk to us about beekeeping. He brought in lots of professional equipment and a beekeeping suit and we learned lots from him. The children were full of amazing questions about this important insect. We can help the bees by planting Physalis and Borage in our gardens and fields.
Garden committee 2024-5
A huge thank you to all the children for applying this year, these were a successful applicants! The garden committee is very important for school because we have a lot of different ways to educate the younger children about biodiversity, the natural world and our beautiful garden.
We help Harry clean up the garden. September is the time for tidying up and getting ready for the winter.
Tree planting!
We were given some trees by the Tree Council of Ireland a while back and together with the Garden Committee we decided we would plant them to the right of our school path. This will offer some shade in the summer month, when it has grown bigger.
Spring has sprung in the garden!
It is a lovely time of year to get out into our garden. The Junior and senior infants weed the flower beds regularly, and we planted flowers in our window boxes. The older children planted bulbs out the back, beside our rainbow wall.
We have been planting a lot since March and the garden is starting to look very well indeed. We are so lucky to have a polytunnel, so we put all of our baby plants in there, where it is nice and warm. This gives them a better start in life and protects them a little more. Look at all of the plants we are growing!
Signs of winter in our garden
Even though it’s freezing cold, there is always life in our garden. We can see lots of berries on our lovely holly tree at the front of the school, as well as Calendula coming up in our wildflower garden. There are buds on our apple tree and blueberry bush, and the spring bulbs are already showing up!
Raised beds in the polytunnel
We have used IKEA bags to create raised beds in the garden. Under the cover of the polytunnel, we will be able to grow a much wider variety of fruit and vegetables, including tomatoes and chillies,
Garden Committee 2023-4
Well done to all the children who applied to be members of the Garden Committee this year. The following children were successful in their application! Well done everyone for trying.
How it all began…..
We collaborated with the children to make a plan for our outdoor space about six years ago. As you can see, we are well on our way!
We have an outdoor classroom, school garden and polytunnel with lots of bright and welcoming artwork on display. We are looking to get involved with a Forest School initiative soon so watch this space!
Paddy Madden visit:
Paddy Madden came to visit our school as part of the Heritage in Schools scheme. He took all the children outside in groups and looked at different aspects of nature in our school grounds.
We looked at the Rowan and Sycamore trees and their seeds. We planted mustard seeds and cress. Paddy was full of praise for our beautiful school grounds and garden!
Our beautiful wildflowers:
The children saved wildflower seeds last year, and we sowed these in our front garden. We have calendula, poppies, sunflowers, corn marigolds, corn cockles and cornflowers. We see lots of pollinating insects at the flowers each day. Thanks you Harry for building our lovely garden beds and benches!
Free ‘Heritage in schools’ tutorials!
The Heritage Council, is offering FREE, fun and educational tutorials online for primary school children, their parents and teachers. The resources are designed to inspire and develop an appreciation and curiosity about Ireland’s wonderful natural and cultural heritage whilst supporting the aims and objectives of the SESE curriculum. Click HERE for more information.
Dr Paddy Madden was meant to come to our school in March to plant a native hedgerow, but he had to cancel because of lock down. We will ask him to visit next year!