Green-fingered pupils who maintained their school garden throughout lockdown and the summer holidays are selling their bumper crops of fruit and veg – and ploughing their earnings back into the plot.
The students, who attend Murray Park Community School, in Mickleover, were growing more than 20 different kinds of produce – from rhubarb to runner beans – when lockdown began in March.
But instead of abandoning the fruit and vegetable plots the youngsters, who all have additional learning needs, visited several times a week even when the school was shut.
Pupils Dan (left) and Josh (right) showing their love for gardening.
Now they are reaping the rewards of their labour and selling their wares to teachers and staff in order to raise money for additional equipment for the garden.
Fourteen-year-old Dan Austin has been named garden manager in return for his enthusiasm for the plot. He is responsible for recording sales and expenditure in a ledger and visited the plot three times a week during lockdown.
He said: “I absolutely love spending time in our garden and after all our hard work getting the plot ready I knew we had to weed it and water it during the weeks that school wasn’t open.
“I’ve learned such a lot from gardening and I come down here almost every night after lessons. We’ve had loads of potatoes, two different lettuces, peppers, cucumbers and even coriander, rosemary and sage.
“I sometimes struggle in class and if it all gets a bit much I am allowed to come here for a bit of a breather – it helps me cope with the bits of school I find hard.”
The green-fingered pupils said gardening has helped them cope with the stresses of lockdown.
Read more: Best-ever GCSE results for pupils at Murray Park Community School.
Fellow year 10 student Josh Bennett, 14, has also been giving up his free time to tend the fruit and vegetable plots.
He said: “During lockdown it was very stressful for everyone and I found coming down to the garden really helped me to cope. I absolutely love gardening now and I’ve even got a little job at a flower shop in Mackworth where I help the owner out.
“Gardening makes me feel calm and I have learned loads too. I’m particularly proud of the potatoes – we’ve had absolutely loads of them. I think I have found a hobby for life.”
The gardening duo have grown more than 20 kinds of produce.
The gardening plot is a new addition to the school and was supported by the donation of a polytunnel from members of the Our Mickleover voluntary group.
As well as growing fruit and vegetables, the pupils have renovated a wooden seat, created a bug hotel, created gravel pathways and installed storage cupboards for a collection of donated gardening books.
Read more: Murray park stages Question Time with Derby North MP Amanda Solloway.
Theresa Lucas, head of The Bridge, the school’s alternative provision, said: “We had four students who continued to put real effort into maintaining the garden during lockdown and I am extremely proud of them.
“The garden has been a wonderful addition to the school, allowing pupils to improve their mental health, learn about nourishing healthy food and spend time outdoors away from screens.
“These students have been an absolute credit to the school and while teenagers often get a bad name – we think our gardeners deserve a real pat on the back.”
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