The children at St Mary’s Primary School in Bridport are now enjoying their own instant award-winning Edible Playground.
We brought the Edible Playgrounds initiative to life with our garden at the Chelsea Flower Show 2008, and won a Gold Medal for our efforts. Here’s the whole story in film, from the original design to the recycling of the garden in Dorset…
Our aim...
The idea of the garden was to inspire schools across the country to transform a bit of their playground into their very own veggie garden, encouraging children to learn where food comes from and how to cook with what they have grown.
Everything in the garden came from Dorset, as did the team who built it. They included designer Nick Williams-Ellis, construction company Marshall James Garden Development Ltd, Woodlanders Natural Garden Products for the raised beds, compost bin and trellis and, for plants and planting, Poundbury Gardens of Dorchester.
The garden took 10 days to put together, and involved uprooting a 30-year-old apple tree from an orchard in Chalmington, take a look at the footage we captured below.
The build...
Below are some pictures we took throughout the 10 day build. Everyone worked so hard to make the garden a success and we were so thrilled with all the wonderful feedback received from the show.
The main event...
The garden at Chelsea Flower Show was opened by pupils from Thornford School, one of the very first to join the Edible Playgrounds initiative – and also the growers of the beetroot in the garden!
We were thrilled when it was awarded a Gold Medal and won Best Courtyard Garden and most gratified by all the attention it received, including visits by BBC garden guru Alan Titchmarsh and Her Majesty the Queen, not to mention TV cameras from across the country. Everyone seemed to especially like the cress heads…
Fancy making your own cress heads, click here to find out how.
You can also see what they had to say about us by watching the clips below:
BBC South Today
ITV Westcountry
ITV The West Tonight
BBC 2 RHS Flower Show
BBC 1 Spotlight
BBC 1 Coverage
What happened next...
When the Chelsea Flower Show finished, we packed the garden up and moved it down to Bridport, where it has been rebuilt in St Mary’s Primary School in Bridport as an instant Edible Playground. We hope the children there will enjoy growing their own veg in award-winning surroundings.
And finally...
We have just won a gold medal and best show garden award for our Edible Playground Show garden at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show. Click here to find out more.
Dorset Cereals would like to thank the following people in helping make this garden possible:
Designed by Nick Williams-Ellis
Constructed by Marshall James Garden Development Ltd (01308863398)
Plants and planting by Poundbury Gardens
The children and staff of all the Dorset Schools
who have helped us.