Children at Bardykes Farm nursery in Blantyre achieved third place in a nationwide garden design competition for their innovative nature project built inside an old bathtub. The contest, organized by Keep Scotland Beautiful as part of its annual pocket garden event, challenged participants to incorporate food for people, a wildlife-friendly environment, and reused materials, all centered on the theme of fresh water.
Project Details
The nursery's entry, titled '10 Drops of Life,' transformed a bathtub filled with compost from the nursery's own garden bins into a garden featuring a water element. The children are growing vegetables and herbs to harvest later in the year. The design was one of 26 selected to be brought to life from over 170 entries submitted by pupils across Scotland.
The children emptied the old bathtub of weeds and soil, replacing them with compost and seeds for both food and wildlife. They added flowers to attract bees and butterflies, and incorporated a water butt 'river' to emphasize the fresh water theme.
Public Vote Success
The project earned third place in the national public vote, which saw more than 5,000 votes cast online over 10 days. Bardykes Farm shared their experience with Keep Scotland Beautiful: 'The children loved emptying the old bath, filling it with compost from our bins and planting seeds for food and wildlife. They especially enjoyed exploring the water section, [and] watching our garden grow from recycled materials and our own compost made us feel proud of what we achieved together.'
The nursery added: '[Pupils] learned how food waste can be turned into compost by worms, bugs and other tiny living things; that rainwater can be collected and reused to help care for them; [and] about teamwork, caring for the environment and reducing waste by reusing materials. Our pocket garden will remain in our nursery outdoor area so that children can continue to enjoy and learn from it – the vegetables and herbs will be harvested and enjoyed by the children, while some produce can also be shared with our farm animals.'
Organizer Praise
Keep Scotland Beautiful praised the winners, with education and learning officer Eve Keepax stating: 'We’ve been running the competition for a decade, and the entries and transformations from design to real gardens never cease to amaze us. The competition provides a great way to connect children and young people with the natural world, food growing, and local wildlife.'
