Tuesday 9^th May 2017

Poly tunnel building and planting in our new, raised beds!

 Another VERY busy day in the 'food for thought' garden!

Today’s challenge was to complete our poly tunnel (using logic as we didn’t have instructions!) bark chip the floor and build raised beds out of decking so we could set our tomatoes and cucumbers!

We used DT and mathematical skills to measure, cut and join the wood for our beds. We also needed to know lots about angles as making our beds ‘square’ (or rectangular!) was a challenge which we had to overcome. We eventually did by using existing corners that we knew were ready made right angles which we then used as a guide.

Making the floor of the poly tunnel was a challenge too. We needed a way to stop the grass and the weeds from growing. We decided to but a black, weed membrane down on the floor. From our science experiments earlier in the year we knew that this would stop the grass and weeds from getting any light which would eventually kill them off.

Finally we had to learn how to set our tomatoes. We knew we needed compost to provide food for our plants. We also learned through research that it is better to set tomatoes deep into the compost as they will sprout new roots from the stem that will make them even stronger and healthier, giving us a much better yield!

Sky was looking at the root systems of our plants. You could tell which plants were healthy!

We also set a curiosity….CUCAMELONS! We aren’t a ‘green eggs and ham’ kind of school! We like to try new things so it will be interesting to see what these little plants turn out like…and even more interesting to see what they taste like! See if you can find a picture of what they look like!!

Planting our seedlings in neat little rows!

Here we are…what a blooming success! We have a poly tunnel, an allotment with six beds, four large beds at the side of the school with pots of potatoes to boot! At the back of the school we have a further four beds. All this in little over 12 months! We have become real problem solvers, developed numerous academic skills (in context!), learned LOTS about teamwork and perseverance and achieved something magnificent that we can actually use, eat, sell and be proud of! Well done everyone!!

Angus is watering our 'Ailsa Craig' tomatoes.

How much water will our seedlings need?



The new, raised beds at the side of the school are now filled!!

The next stage is looking after our little plants! We’ll be learning lots about mini beasts and caring for plants as we try and make our biggest yield EVER!



The raised beds at the back of the school are filling up fast!

 

We have some tiny gooseberries already! The rhubarb needs water in the sunshine!