Pupils from four Andover schools have planted wildflowers they sowed in April into Harmony Woods, rain and all, finishing Andover Trees United's seed project.

Children from four Andover schools have planted wildflowers into Harmony Woods that they sowed themselves in April. Pupils from Endeavour Primary School (King & Kirk campus), Portway Junior School, Clatford Primary School and Knights Enham Junior School turned out in the rain to put their young plants into the ground, finishing the latest stage of Andover Trees United’s Disappearing Wildflowers project.

The children were involved from the start: they sowed the seeds, looked after the seedlings as they grew, and have now planted them in the woodland, where the charity says they will give pollinators and other wildlife more food and shelter.

Abbey Sadler, Nature & Community Engagement Officer at Andover Trees United, said the fact that the pupils grew the plants themselves is what made the day:

“There is something very special about children being involved from the beginning. They haven’t simply arrived to plant something someone else has grown. They sowed these seeds themselves, cared for them, and have now come back to give them a permanent home at Harmony Woods.”

Two hands firming soil around a young flowering wildflower plant in a freshly dug bed marked with pink spray paint
A young wildflower plant being firmed into the soil. Photo: supplied by Andover Trees United

Muddy boots, good conditions

The weather was wet, but the charity says that suited the job: the rain made for muddy boots and also gave the young plants ideal conditions to establish.

“The rain certainly didn’t put them off,” Ms Sadler said. “They got stuck in, worked brilliantly together and can now come back in the future and see how the wildflowers they planted are developing.”

Why wildflowers at Harmony Woods

The planting is part of the charity’s wider work to improve biodiversity at Harmony Woods, adding variety to the woodland habitat as well as food and shelter for insects. Schools are a regular part of that work: on its Harmony Woods project page the charity explains that wildflower planting days with school children are fitted around the schools’ own timetables, alongside its regular volunteer days.

Andover Trees United says it wants to give children practical chances to learn about trees, wildlife and biodiversity, and hopes that involving them directly in planting and habitat creation will build “a lasting connection between children and the natural spaces around them”. For the pupils, the charity adds, the project showed how conservation “can begin with something as simple as a seed”.

Three muddy hand trowels resting on a black plastic plant crate
Muddy trowels on a plant crate after the planting at Harmony Woods. Photo: supplied by Andover Trees United

The charity thanked the children and staff of all four schools “for their enthusiasm, determination and continued support”.

What it means for you

  • Families at the four schools: the children can go back to Harmony Woods and see how their wildflowers are coming on, which is exactly what the charity hopes they will do.
  • Other schools: Andover Trees United runs a schools programme of outdoor learning and planting days with local schools.
  • Want to help? The charity’s volunteer team works at Harmony Woods every Monday and on the second Saturday of each month, according to its project page.

Andover Trees United also runs family events in the woods: its half-term pumpkin carving morning is on Friday 30 October.