A wonderful afternoon

"He who learns but does not think, is lost! He who thinks but does not learn is in great danger"

Confucius

The weather was kind to us on our afternoon garden open day. We enjoyed a steady stream of visitors throughout the afternoon.  The school recorder group and the choir performed on the wonderful stage that is the pond dipping platform.  A place for live music if ever there was one.

There were many games about the grounds of the garden which were busy for most of the afternoon.

Refreshments were available on the school drive selling tea, coffee, squash and home made cakes.

Around the garden our visitors commented on the colours and vast array of plants.

The helpers bed

Large blue gladioli

Geranium 'Rozanne'

The pink dwarf geranium bed

Lilies on the pond

New to science!

Pitcher plants in the greenhouse

Turnip patch

White Onions

Mange tout

Finally a huge thank you to all the helpers, without who we could not have functioned and also a huge thank you to the Friends of Holy Trinity for their help and support.  We made £252 on the day which will be used in the Jurassic Garden.  Now that the land has been cleared we hope after the NGS weekend to continue with the project laying the Ammonite shaped path and infilling with a suitable medium from Portland Quarries.

If you missed the Open day do not fear! The NGS weekend is Saturday July 19th and Sunday July 20th.  All are welcome.  This prestigious event raises funds for charity and we look forward to seeing you there!

Garden open day

A quick blog update to confirm that the school garden open day will be this coming Saturday July 5th from 14.00 to 16.30.  There will be plenty of games to challenge visitors and refreshments.

A very pastel shaded Penstemon

The more traditional shade of Penstemon

 Bees are very fond of Penstemon flowers.  They can often be seen landing on the lip of the flower and walking in to collect the pollen

This flower appeared in the greenhouse today- one of the gourds

The bloom of a dinosaur gourd- now flowering in the greenhouse

Members of the garden group will be on hand to answer questions and we hope our visitors enjoy the experience.  The main reason for the open day is of course funds.  We are desperate to continue with the Jurassic Garden.  The next stage will be laying out and putting down the ammonite shaped path.  We have the path edging material but funds will be needed for the infill and then to start planting up with large ferns and other suitable plants.

The pond is looking good at the moment and we are trying to keep on top of the wretched algae which has appeared. As soon as it is removed it returns by the next day.

The school pond

Finishing on a natural history thread.  This quite large excavation was spotted this afternoon. It has been made by one of the mining bees. The insect could be seen sat just inside the structure but could not be tempted out for identification.  It is probably one of the Andrena sp.

Lastly another parastic bee was spotted yesterday around the vegetable beds.  It awaits identification.  It was watching other small bees waiting to move in when the chance arose.

The parasitic bee- which resembles a wasp!

We look forward to welcoming you on Saturday.  The weather forecast is good.  There is much to see and enjoy in the garden and we hope that your generosity will help us move forward with the Jurassic phase of the school garden.

Once again  Saturday July 5th  from 14.00 to 16.30