Finalist Certificate in Tui Garden Challenge Competitin

November 6th 2012

Today Tracey from TUI came to kindergarten to judge our garden as we have been chosen as a finalist out of hundreds of entrants in the TUI/MEGA MITRE 10 School Garden Challenge Competition. Tracey really liked our garden and gave us good feedback about our garden and the way we had sent in our competition updates. It was lovely to have Tracey here today. Thank you to TUI for the garden books, the framed certificate, and the voucher to be redeemed at Mega Mitre 10 for some fabulous garden tools. It has been really great being a part of the competition again this year. It is exciting to share our passion for gardening with others. 

Barbara. 

How Does Our Garden Grow???

Garden Update. 

October 23rd - Spring is definitely here in Auckland..............wind (gale force at times), rain, sun, cloud, rain again, sun, etc etc......and this is just ONE DAY!! The wind has been terrible this spring. The garden grows but it is taking a battering. The veges are surviving but two tomato plants are battling to survive. Fingers crossed that they make it. All the other plants are growing and looking quite happy. We are eating strawberry's off our plants already......that's if they survive little people picking them when they are GREEN! :( 

Sustainability - selling worm tea.

Above: Chloe filling her bottle. 


Chloe, Jessica, and Ben helped fill clean milk bottles with worm tea today. Ann-Maree made up a nice colorful label which we glued on to the bottles. We have put the bottles of worm on our Trading Table for parents/whanau to buy to feed their garden. 

Above: Four bottles of 'worm tea' for trade on the Trading Table. 

Selling worm tea is just another way of becoming more sustainable in our kindergarten. It is also a way of sharing our beautiful worm tea with our kindergarten families. 

Written by Barbara (teacher).  

Tomato's and Lettuce's planted.

Above and right: Today Charli and Chloe helped in the garden by planting out one of the 'Early Girl' tomato plants each. We haven't raised these from seed at kindergarten but we have planted them into yummy compost from the worm farm. We have staked the tomato plants and have placed a mini 'fizzy drink bottle' hot house over them to protect them from the elements (it is quite windy at times at the moment). 

Above, right, and below: Today Jessica (right) and Chloe (below) sowed TUI Gourmet Lettuce seeds in the garden between the tomato plants. We put TUI Quash round the edge of the garden bed to stop Mr and Mrs Snail and all the little snails from eating our lettuces when they sprout. 

Thank you for all your help today girls. You are learning about how to care for plants and your kindergarten environment. Great life  long skills. I hope that you are becoming passionate about growing food to eat too.
Written by Barbara (teacher). :)

Planting Snow Pea Seedlings

Above: Today Layla Mac helped in the garden planting some of the Snow Pea seedlings around one of the bamboo teepees. We sowed the seeds in August into egg carton pots in TUI SEED RAISING MIX. We have had an almost 100% success rate. YAY!!

Right: When Layla got tired of planting Amy, Atikin's mummy, took over and finished off the planting out of the seedlings. She thoroughly enjoyed spending time in the kindergarten garden. 


Left and Below: Thank you to Layla and Amy we have all the Snow Pea seedlings planted around both of the bamboo teepees. We have grown peas around these teepees for two years now. They are lasting well. 

Planting Spinach

Above: Today Zoe helped me in the garden. Firstly we pulled the old, 'gone to seed' spinach up out of the garden. We put this into the compost bin (right). 

Below: Zoe holding the new spinach plants ready to plant in the space where the old were. 

Below Right: new spinach planted in the garden with TUI QUASH scattered around so those naughty garden visitors, Mr and Mrs Snail, will not feed on them. 

Zoe, thank you for helping me in the garden today. You are one of the keenest gardeners at kindergarten. Our bird pets are going to enjoy eating the yummy spinach when it grows. I love all the help that  you so happily give me. Gardening is becoming a strong interest for you. 

Written by Barbara. 

Above: Joe, Piper, and Makayla planting out the cucumber plant. Right: Connor joined the group also.
Below: just hanging out in the garden.

Today we planted a cucumber plant. The afternoon children helped to plant it. After that we just hung out in the garden for a while. Makayla had a storybook that she wanted me to read so we sat on the garden wall and i read it to them. It was a lovely time in the garden.