Search

kids edible gardens Tag

Enviroschools Marlborough / Posts tagged "kids edible gardens" (Page 4)
Fairhall School Kids Edible Gardens

Kids’ Edible Gardens Update

Fairhall School The focus for Term 2 was compost making, starting with the critters that help with that process – the ‘Recycling Gang’!  The children laid out samples of compost onto tarpaulins, then used their observation skills to look for and identify some of the bugs living in their compost heap.  They found worms, slaters, centipedes and slugs.  Next, they watched a video clip on a bug that we don’t want in New Zealand: the brown marmorated stink bug.  Now that these students know how to identify insects, they will be able to be super sleuths in our gardens, protecting our fruit and vegetables from unwanted invaders. The next topic explored was winter pruning.  The...

Read More
Gardening at Blenheim School

Kids’ Edible Gardens update

Blenheim School It was a very wet Term 2 at Blenheim School – it seemed to rain every gardening day!  The children found plenty to do inside the classroom.  They investigated how plants talk to them and what it means when the leaves of some plants turn yellow.  Their citrus trees had yellow leaves, and the children discovered that the trees were probably suffering from a lack of nitrogen or iron.  Between showers, the children gave them a good feed with layers of lawn clippings, blood and bone, compost and mulch.  Back inside, they talked about replenishing the soil and resting beds. Having planned to build another compost heap, it rained yet again.  Instead, the...

Read More
Bottle compost at Witherlea School

Kids’ Edible Gardens update

Although it has been cold and wet outside, Marlborough students have been keeping up with their winter gardening tasks.  Over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing some of the learning that went on in Term 2 at schools in Marlborough's 'Kids' Edible Gardens' programme. Witherlea School While the growth of vegetables slowed with the onset of winter, the children kept busy by investigating composting.  Before getting started, they looked at soil with very little organic matter or compost and compared it to soil in their vegetable garden.  The soil from the vegetable garden was darker, fluffier and had lots of insects living in it.  It was a good way to learn how compost improves the soil.  After talking about what goes...

Read More
Kids' Edible Gardens

Kids’ Edible Gardens: bugs and compost

As we reach the shortest day for 2017, we are remembering summer-fun in the garden at Canvastown and Fairhall schools. In Term 1, as part of their investigation into ecology and diversity in the garden, the children at Canvastown School went on an insect hunt, learning to recognise the insects that live in their garden (top left image).  Insects have an important role to play in an organic garden, we have to care for them as much as we do the plants we grow.  The children wanted to encourage more insects to live and work in their garden so they decided to make a bug hotel out of recycled pallets and building materials as...

Read More