Wallace High pupils go wild

During the summer term a group of pupils teamed up to create Wallace's first wild flower eco garden.

As the school is known for its creative use of ICT they opted for a wild flower project with a difference; the pupils decided to attempt a time-lapse video of the flowers growing throughout the summer months.

In the UK the native flowers are actually on the demise as 97% of wild flower meadows have disappeared since the 1930s. The Eco team realised that such a demise not only impacts on the colour of our countryside but also threatens our populations of butterflies, bees, pollinating bugs and birds.

The team applied to be part of the National Grow Wild Project which is the UK’s biggest-ever wild flower campaign, bringing people together to transform local spaces with native, pollinator-friendly wild flowers and plants.

The pupils were elated to be selected and the wild flower kit, aptly named Grow Wild, arrived in March and the group started the preparation stage in late April. Each week the team worked with Groundsman, Harry, to cultivate the garden during the early growth stage.

Isaac (Year 8) commented: “It was a great project as each week Harry would teach us about growing plants from seed. We all received strawberry plants that we then planted at home.”

Alongside planting the Grow Wild seeds the group set up a Raspberry Pi computer and camera in a purpose built, battery powered time-lapse station. The camera captured an image each hour during daylight hours.

The team is looking forward to increasing the size of the garden next year and there is already mention of beehives and honey.

All the pupils involved have shown tremendous interest and commitment to the Grow Wild Project and are very grateful to Mr. Cleland and Mr. McKnight for organising the club and most importantly to Harry for sharing his expertise and enthusiasm.