Our school garden

By Sarah Womersley, coordinator at Rowledge Primary School

Here at Rowledge Primary School’s communal school garden, the “Busy Bees Gardening and Wildlife Club” are trying to extend the flowering season for our bumblebee visitors.

We are letting our self seeded wildflowers grow where they think best – including our borage plant which lives in the top of the compost container, and will stay where it is for the rest of the season to provide some autumn nectar!

Did you know? Borage is a bumblebee superfood! After a bumblebee has fed on its flowers, borage can refill the nectar in just a few minutes – ready for the next guest.

We are also planting with spring and early queen bumblebees in mind. All of our winter bedding containers are being under-planted with crocuses which should pop up early in the spring, and they also contain lungwort (Pulmonaria) and forget-me-nots, which should provide some winter and spring nectar.

The classes are potting up self-seeded hellebore saplings to plant in the garden next spring and are planting 120 lavender plug plants for over-wintering and passing on to parents next spring to spread the bumblebee love to their gardens at home.

Why hellebores? These easy-to-grow plants flower early in the year (typically December – April), and so provide a rich source of pollen and nectar for winter-active bumblebees and hungry bumblebee queens emerging from hibernation in spring! There are lots of varieties you can try including stinking hellebore (Helleborus foetidus) and Christmas rose (Helleborus niger).

We will be undertaking some nature detective sessions to try to identify which bees we have visiting us next spring!