Week 16

Blue skies. Warm sunshine. A little breeze, and the excited chatter as the Busy Beez come together to overhaul an overgrown bed. Two very large Hebe's dominate the space, but they have become leggy, and lost their shape, so they have to go. But before we rolled up our sleeves, there were cuttings of the old shrubs to take. We found suitable sideshoots, and once we'd removed the lower leaves, we popped them into small pots of compost. This time next year, these should be new hebe shrubs.

The Beez worked tirelessly today removing the old hebes. There was much digging, pulling, heaving and puffing, but not one moan or groan, and within a matter of minutes, both monsterous plants had been uprooted, like the Enormous Turnip!

Everyone worked really well as a team to remove any last roots and weeds in the cleared area in preparation to the planting of the new acquisitions.

Here we have our replacement plants. They don't look much right now, but they will encourage bees and butterflies, and their scents should waft into the offices on a warm day.

First up are the lillies. Strongly fragrant, these will give a little height in the border while the smaller plants establish.

The Hebe is nice and compact with grey/green foliage. It's flowers will attract butterflies.

A hardy fuschia with dark pink ballerina flowers, which although will lose it's leaves in the Winter, will come back each Spring bigger and better. Not fragrant, but a very pretty shrub.

Three old fashioned 'Pinks' with a scent of cloves. Over time these will spread into larger clumps, and flower over a very long period.

Two hardy Geraniums, also known as 'Cranesbills', will soon spread out and make very effective ground cover plants to help keep the weeds at bay. These are herbacious perennials, so will die back in the Winter, resprouting again bigger and better each Spring.

And finally this is of course Lavender. It might look a little different than the average Lavender, with it's 'Bunny Rabbit Ears', but it smells just as wonderful.

Come the Autumn, we have a huge amount of daffodils to plant in the spaces between these new plants, but for now there is watering, and pest-checking to be done.

The beans are begining to flower...

...as are the cherry tomatoes

And how about this for a head of lettuce!

Lets hope for more good weather, with perhaps some evening rain. Happy gardening!

Week 15

Summer has certainly arrived in the Shooter's Grove gardens. We have had little rain and our young plants can get stressed very quickly in the heat. Usually, watering is done either early in the mornings before the sun hits the plants to prevent scorch, or as the sun sets to help prevent too much evaporation. Our younger Beez have been given the responsibility of watering all our containers each morning before the sun reaches the containers.

The Veg-e-tables in the Junior area were planted up this week. In each of these colourful containers, the Busy Beez planted a couple of cherry tomato plants called Minibel. These were started off as seeds and kept in my own greenhouse until we were ready to plant them out. This is a tomato suitable to grow in hanging baskets and containers, and the small red fruits should appeal to the children.

At the moment, each plant has small yellow flowers, called sets. These will be visited by passing insects who will pollinate them, and then when the flowers fall off, the tiny tomatoes will be forming behind, within a few weeks, these will swell and turn red. Yummy.

Also in these containers, we have planted a variety of pepper called Razzamatazz, and a couple of courgettes called Black Beauty from the BBC's Dig In Campaign. The courgettes have flower buds already, so it shouldn't be too long before our Busy Beez begin to see the fruits of their labour.

The planters are in full sun for pretty much all of the day, so they will need attending to each day, watering, feeding, and checking for pests.

Week 14

 

There's a buzz in the air, and for once it's not a Vuvuzela! It is the hum of tiny insects busy at their work. There are flowers to pollinate, food to be had and honey to be made. They have little time for football, let alone the World Cup.

We had a mammoth task on our hands for this weeks Busy Beez Gardening Club. All our young plants needed to be planted out. From Sweet Peas with the promise of their heavenly scent, to the Pumpkins for our Halloween Disco.

These are our 'Veg-e-tables'. We have two at the Infants entrance and two at the Junior's. This week we planted up the ones in the Infants with pumpkins and the violas from the hanging baskets. Seeds were also sown of lettuce, beetroot and radish. These large, brightly coloured containers have already generated much interest, which hopefully will continue as the plants grow and crop.

Mrs H kindly donated some bedding plants, which were quickly put to good use in the hanging baskets in the courtyard. Here we have the trusty stalwarts begonia's and petunia's. They might not look much right now, but in the coming weeks will explode into a fireball of colour.

All the plants are making the most of the warmer weather this week. This includes the dreaded weeds. If allowed, these will flower and set seed, multiplying a small problem into a much larger one. As the Busy Beez only meet once a week for around 30 minutes, and we have had so many jobs to do in such a short time, weeding often gets forgotten. This week, some of our Beez made a start on conquering these beasts, beginning with the garden by the carpark.

Once cleared of dandelions, thistles, speedwell and chickweed, we were able to plant out the last of our Sunflowers and Sweetpeas, both of which will use the raillings as support. The daffoldil foliage is yet to be trimmed back, but the fresh green leaves here are those of Crocosmia, also known as 'Montbretia'. These were planted by our Beez last year, and will provide fiery orange spikes later in the year.

There is colour to be found right now though. From the Hardy Geraniums (Cranesbill) to this little fellow. From an unfriendly looking flower spike, these beautiful Sweet Williams have burst into colour.

Week 13

Since we were all on half term last week (week 12), no photo's were taken and no update on the Busy Beez Gardening Blog. However, our caretaker kept everything ticking along in our absence, and everything has grown really well.

We have some wonderful news. While we were away, the base was laid, and the greenhouse was erected!! May we take this opportunity to thank those involved, and for all those parents who sent in the Morrison's Let's Grow Vouchers last time around!

Our lettuce and carrot seedlings have germinated in the herb wheel, beans and one of our cabbages which has run to seed, have come on apace, and there has been some growth on the nasturtiums.

The marigolds are filling our nicely, and there is a splash of colour in the courtyard border.

Round in the Enviromental Garden, the plants in the cold frame should be able to be planted out next week.

Our Veg-e-tables have arrived too. These are large colourful containers, and our veg are going to be very happy in them. Watch this space!

Week 11

Enviromental Week

As part of our Enviromental week, we're having extended gardening club time. Just as well really because the recent heat-wave has brought eveything on at a pace. Two weeks ago, this tree in the Enviromental Garden was laden with blossom. Now it is hanging onto those last blooms desperately as the majority lay in a thick pink carpet around it's roots.

If you listen hard enough, you can hear the faint cheeping of baby birds. I sat for a while, camera posed to see what birds they might be, and within minutes a Great Tit flew out. So fast was it, that for the life of me I couldn't get a decent shot. Each group of children who came to potter around in the garden this afternoon sat a while to watch the parents flit in and out of the bird box. A real treat.

The recent heat-wave has lowered the level of our pond quite considerably, making the spotting of our tadpoles much easier.

Also brought on by the warmer weather, and nestled safely in our coldframe, we have Sunflowers which will be recycled as the seeds of the spent blooms will provide a rich source of food for our bird table in the colder months. Sweet Peas for their scent of course and Pumpkins which we hope will be ready for our Halloween Disco. All will be ready for planting out after Spring Break, weather permitting.

We had a delivery recently of some young tree saplings. Among them were Holly, Dog Rose and Hawthorn. As they were in need of a drink, they have been left overnight to soak, ready for KS2 to plant them during the rest of Enviromental Week.

In the meantime, there were potatoes to earth up. They had certainly been making the most of the warmer weather and have reached the top of their containers. The compost was added, and the pupils found watering them a pleasure, naturally.

In the Infant's courtyard, the foliage of the spent Spring Bulbs had to be cut down. We've actually added more compost to these long troughs and planted our French Beans, Lettuce and some of the Nasturtiums.

The remainder of the Nasturtiums have been planted and placed close to the beans as a companion plant. This should attract aphids away from them. Marigolds have been planted for the same reason, although we intend on planting them with our tomatoes.

In the 'wheel' we have so far sown carrots and some more lettuce. After the half term holiday, we shall sow our herbs in the remaining three hubs.

We have arranged all our pots and containers in this area for now as it is nearer the outside tap. for our lovely Caretaker who will tend to them over the holiday for us.

Week 10

The Great Plant Hunt Week 17-22 May 2010

A weed is simply a plant growing in the wrong place.

Today the Busy Beez went on a jolly, joining other primary schools across the UK for The Great Plant Hunt Week. In this mass observation study looking for ten common plants, our Beez searched in the open spaces and hedgerows which our school is lucky to be surrounded by.

The first to be spotted, and lets face it you can't miss them at the moment, was the humble Dandelion. A hardy perennial whose flowers are light-sensitive, opening in the early morning and closing in the evening or in gloomy weather. The name Dandelion comes from the French 'dents de lion' (teeth of the lion). At this time of the year Dandelions are extremely invasive, but they are an important source of nectar for our precious bees.

In folklore, it is said that if you blow the fluffy seedheads of the flower away in one go it will make a wish come true. Another tale is that it can tell you the time by the amount of puffs it takes to blow away the 'clock'.

On the bank by the nursery playground, our hunters found Bellis Perennis, or Daisy. This tiny flower is a favourite among the girls who make chains with them. The name daisy originates from the Anglo-Saxon word 'daes eage' which translates to 'days eye', referring to the flower opening at dawn.

It was said that in Roman times, bandages were soaked in the astringent juices of the daisies and applied to the wounds of the soldiers.

Among the other plants hunted down were Sorrel also known as dockweed, the leaves the broad-leaved variety are often used as a soothing treatment for stinging nettles. Fortunately these two plants often grow close together.

The flowers of the Elder were next. The strong-smelling foliage of the Elder was once hung on the mane of horses to help keep flies at bay. These days the flowers and berries are used for medicine and culinary purposes.

Among the masses and masses of dandelions and speedwell we spotted our next flower. Garlic Mustard is a favourite food of the pieris napi butterfly, and the perfect home for laying their eggs. The flowers are often pollenated by midges, which may be why we were so bothered by them on our walk.

We have a strong suspicion that some of the flowers have yet to appear due to the late season. These elusive blooms include the red clover, self-heal, silver birch and white campion. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the UK report their findings, and compare them to our own.

Week 9

May has been quite a disappointment so far. This week we've had some pretty sharp showers during the daytime, and the night time temperatures have been below freezing. Fortunately, our young plants are safe and warm in the greenhouse at home.

We have had the go-ahead now for the positioning of the Busy Beez greenhouse - a patch of land between the junior playground and the Enviromental Garden. We're just waiting now for the base to be laid. Fingers crossed this will be before the half term break at the end of this month.

In the Junior beds, our perennial herbs are flowering, much to the delight of passing insects

The Beez have been busy again this week. Our potatoes are growing really well, and these needed covering up again. Our main job however was to move the compost bin from one side of the Enviromental Garden to the other AND all it's contents - eugh. Lovely. I think we'll leave it there.

Staying in the Enviromental Garden, we have a magnificent tree in full bloom. Quite breathtaking!