We invite you to meet the winners of the ‘Our Backyard’ competition. As part of the series, we will present the 13 best projects from Poland and Ukraine. Each one includes an original description of the work carried out and photographic or/and film documentation.
We are looking forward to spring and a full blossoming of projects, but for now, we invite you to read on!
🌻 ‘School Flower Bed’ project
Submitted by: Krystyna Mazurek
School: Primary School in Oszczepalin
Participants: pupils from VI–VIII class, age 11–14
Author’s description of the project:
As part of the competition, we decided to revitalise a neglected section of our schoolyard – a lawn in front of the main entrance. The area was in poor condition with numerous patches of missing grass due to a lack of regular maintenance, and the turf had been damaged by cars driving over it.
We decided to transform this space into an attractive flower bed.
🧑🌾What activities did we carry out within this project?
The project involved students from grades VII and VIII, together with teachers, around 15 people.
The work was carried out in stages, as the ground was very firm. Removing the old turf alone took us two afternoons. Afterwards, the entire area was carefully dug over.
Planting was also done in several stages. Some plants were purchased, but many seedlings were brought in by students from their home gardens. Once the soil was properly prepared, we planted decorative shrubs, followed by evergreen plants. To add colour to the flower bed, we also planted around 20 pansies and other annual flowers.
The next step was laying landscaping fabric. We spent one afternoon at a local sawmill, filling bags with bark. The following day, we spread it between the plants, giving the whole composition a neat and finished look. We also tidied up the surrounding area.
The joint effort of students and teachers quickly brought visible results that we could enjoy almost immediately. We are now eagerly anticipating the next stage – blooming plants and the arrival of pollinating insects. In the future, we plan to install insect houses and continue planting flowers each year, not only to make the area more attractive but also to create a friendly environment for insects.
👉 Be sure to see the photos and video from the project implementation.
We encourage you to explore all episodes of the series.
