Bridgewater School's junior gardeners blossom at annual Flower Show

Children from Bridgewater School delighted visitors with their lacewing-inspired show garden at this year’s RHS Flower Show Tatton Park.

Pupils from the Worsley-based school were selected to create a show garden for the prestigious Cheshire show as part of the RHS Campaign for School Gardening. The opening day of the RHS Flower Show Tatton Park marked the successful culmination of months of potting and planting by the school’s Prep Gardening Club who were overjoyed to present their finished design to enthusiastic members of the public.

The Bridgewater School garden, which was awarded a merit by the panel of judges, featured piano keys set amid a variety of pollinators in hues of purple and white, paving the way to the score of Stevie Wonder’s most famous love song I Just Called To Say I Love You. The children’s stunning design was a celebration of the lacewing, a delicate garden creature that produces a low frequency ‘song’ for communication and courtship.

Encouraging children to think about wildlife in their own garden, this year’s theme of ‘Garden Creatures’ was chosen by the Royal Horticultural Society to celebrate their partnership with Eric Carle’s best-selling children’s book The Very Hungry Caterpillar which marks its 50th anniversary this year and tells the story of a little caterpillar who munches his way through a host of fruit and vegetables before becoming a beautiful butterfly.

Mr Suter, Prep teacher and Gardening Club Organiser, said that: “Being selected to participate in this year’s RHS Flower Show is testament to the enthusiasm for gardening shown by the children, who recently received their Level 3 RHS Gardening Award. The show has been an amazing opportunity for the school, with our Junior Gardeners and Art Club working together to create something truly wonderful. We’re now looking forward to getting our school garden back in shape ready to grow fruit and vegetables for the forthcoming year!”