Wildlife Garden Development

It's Friday. Term is over. The school year somehow 'complete' without ever being completed. Mama Beech is basking in sunshine and enjoying the peace of the woods without children!! 😆

However for some it has been a busy week!

The 'tidying' after 6 weeks of constant Forest School and continual Outdoor Learning has taken it's toll! It's a good job that the land we use is about to get six weeks rest.

So for the first time since March I had time to tackle the Wildlife garden.

Last September the garden was feeling a little sorry for itself. The canopy over basecamp was on the floor and the pond was little bit too utilitarian to encourage much wildlife...

We started by re-wilding the edges of the pond and tidying the whole area. The canopy was raised but winds brought it down again, so a long longed for upgrade was finally discussed. An unexpected rebate on services unused suddenly put enough money in the budget to look for a more permanent and robust structure, and the roundhouse/outdoor classroom started life, albeit in planning stages.

The pond was a little more difficult to change. Concrete edges don't allow for slopes or ledges, or planting close to the water. 

The first step was to add some logs to one end, dipping some low enough for birds to sit on and reach the water for drinking or 'washing'. It also allowed the newts easy access OUT of the pond if they wanted it and somewhere to shelter if they did. As the roundhouse was built we kept all the off-cuts to help build up the area.

Eventually the roundhouse was completed...

It was very exciting to have a solid structure that the whole school could use for outdoor learning, but the Wildlife garden still needed help to encourage wildlife!

So over 2020 we've added in cut willow whips, plants from the poly tunnel, bulbs, seeds.... and a few trees from the Woodland Trust.

Plus slopes as an escape route for wildlife that finds itself swimming when it never planned to.

We also managed to convince the company that comes to cut our acres of grass to just cut pathways through the knee high grass, and to allow wildflowers to grow - and it's amazing what did, and the difference it made! 

Using discarded willow from the trimming of our willow tunnel we've attempted to create some 'living walls' around part of the round house. Willow often roots itself from cuttings. We soaked some small 'whips' until they grew roots and then planted those. These tall whips had very little soaking because there was 1 day to get them into the ground! 

They may take - they may not... 🤞

But it's still worth trying.

And before lockdown we got to plant a hedge with the children (trees from Woodland Trust free trees for schools) which is now thriving despite being ignored for 8 weeks! 

We also managed to put in a smaller watering spot for wildlife to access away from the pond.

So in 9 and a half months, excluding lockdown we've managed to reach a much more natural point. Bug hotel. bird hide, bird boxes and feeders, willow walls, flowers, wildflowers, logs, hedges, and a new outdoor classroom...

But there is still a lot to do - to maintain it at least! 

And improvements in the pipeline! 

Newts and frogs seem to be enjoying the space, as do butterflies, bees and the occasional dragonfly. The birds noisily let us know when the feeders are empty and the roundhouse hosted 12 campfires last week, the children loved it.

So fingers crossed, when September arrives it's not too overgrown, waterlogged or drought parched, and we can continue with bulb planting and seed collecting, add to the hedgehog houses and toad abodes and make the ongoing upkeep a routine the children can be involved in.

Watch this space!