Students working towards their NVQ level one diploma in Horticulture took part in a competition hosted by Myerscough College, in conjunction with the Royal Horticultural Society, for National Gardening Week 2015.
The pupils, who are all in Year 9, were challenged to design and build a small and useable garden from scratch. They worked in two groups and were assisted by some NVQ Level 3 Landscape and Horticultural students from Myerscough College. The groups were given a range of materials to use to bring their design to life including plants, paving stones, trellis and building equipment.
From start to finish students had just four and a half hours to complete their competition entry. They started by spending 30 minutes designing, planning and deciding on what materials to use. Once they had completed the preparation stage they pulled on their overalls and steel toe capped boots and got straight to work bringing their designs to life.
Carr Hill students were given the opportunity to learn lots of new skills; they made a “mix” to lay a path, learnt how to measure and lay stones and lay and cut the turf. Pupils also used a variety of plants, flowers, trees and an obelisk to give their garden a unique feel.
When both gardens were finished Mr Taffe, from Green Space at Myerscough College, came to judge the competition. The criteria for judging was design, creativity, team work and the visual effect of the garden. After much deliberation and discussion Mr Taffe picked a winning team. He said: “It was a hard decision as both teams had fully grasped the concept of what was needed to create a small, useable, garden space.”
Year 9 Alex was one of the students to take part in the competition. She said: “Going to the college was fun as it was so big and different from school. All the staff and students were really friendly and I would definitely like to go there again. I liked taking part in the competition because it was motivating to build our garden. I think our design was good because the fencing and flowers looked great.”
Fellow Year 9 Ben also took part in the competition and was on the opposite team. Ben said: “I was surprised when the judges chose our design as the winner because they kept looking at the other team’s design. I think they were struggling to pick between the two. My favourite parts of the day were learning to mix cement for the path and working in a team.”
Horticultural teacher Ms Ashton took the Carr Hill students to the competition with Personal Development Leader Mr Beale. She said: “All the students fully enjoyed the day and not only did they learn new skills to use in the school garden but they got the opportunity to chat to staff and other students from Myerscough about career options.”
“Mr Beale and I were glad we didn’t have to judge the competition because we both agreed that it would have been a difficult choice to make! From the outset both teams began the task full of enthusiasm and fantastic ideas. The concentration and the way they performed during the task was very impressive. The students were truly a credit to the school.”
The gardens will be on display at Myerscough College until 7th June 2015.
Carr Hill students shine at College garden design and build competition
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