Trevor Sargent cuts the ribbon at the opening of St. Teresa's N.S. vegetable garden while Principal Pat Furlong lends a hand.
I was delighted to be asked to open the very special vegetable garden in St Teresa’s National School, Balbriggan, last Friday. Principal. Mr Pat Furlong, caretaker Richard along with Ms Ann Lee, her pupils, and their parents pulled together to create a spectacular and very productive organic garden, complete with bug hotel and scarecrows. The full range of popular vegetables was looking good and very healthy. After the ribbon cutting and the very welcome cuppa and sandwiches, Ms Lee asked about my own patch. Before long we had a plan in place for her class to walk up the road on Monday morning to see ”Trevor’s Kitchen Garden’.
Coincidentally, the importance of gardening for good childhood development has been in the news this week following publication of a three year study by the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) in the UK. The study was commissioned by the Royal Horticultural Society, a great organization which helps thousands of schools to establish gardens.
The NFER studied 10 schools in depth in Britain from London city to rural Yorkshire. As well as that, over 1,300 teachers were surveyed over 3 years. This research found that schools which actively use a garden in the curriculum develop ‘resiliant’, ‘ready to learn’ and ‘responsible’ children.
So to talk about gardening developing skills to ensure society has the means to feed itself in the future is but one worthwhile reason to get growing. Here and now, gardening in schools, homes and communities is key to our children becoming well-balanced, healthy, happy and all round well developed individuals. On top of this, tilling the soil develops qualities of patience, co-operation and entrepreneurship amongst many young people, the reseach found.
Mind you, when the green-fingered pupils of St. Teresa’s National School in Balbriggan called around last Monday, it was enjoyment and adventure which was uppermost on their minds. After a glass of apple juice each, they were in fine voice to sing a few bars of ”The Garden Song’ to ‘robin watching hungrily from his perch in yonder tree’. The video clip below gives some sense of the occasion.
