Scotlands first edible school wall!

July’s blog comes from the winner of the 2016 CSGN Ideas Fund, urban greening research scientist and consultant Dr Lynette Robertson, talking about the successful delivery of the edible vertical garden she has created at Busby Primary School in East Renfrewshire with the help of landscape artist Marc Grañén:

Vertical gardens are a great way to liven-up school grounds in urban areas with limited green space and they help provide much-needed opportunities for pupils to connect with nature, which has been shown to be beneficial for student learning, and health and wellbeing. The importance of environmental education in schools is increasingly recognised, and this project aims to combine outdoor learning with messages on healthy eating.

Marc Grañén has gained international recognition for his work with schools in Barcelona and it’s been really exciting to work with him on a first installation in Scotland, in collaboration with Bristol-based landscape architect Alex Patience (Livegraft).

Pupils at Busby Primary school were involved in the planting of the vertical garden, using an assortment of edible plants such as strawberries and culinary herbs, as well as variety of wildflower species to help support rare local butterflies, selected with the help of Butterfly Conservation (BC) Scotland Project Officer Anthony McCluskey. Located in the school grounds, the pupils will also be involved in looking after the garden as it continues to grow and flourish, which will include biodiversity monitoring with the help of BC Scotland.

The school has been incredibly supportive of the project, they see the vertical garden as a valuable resource, providing pupils with a vehicle to explore conservation, sustainability and biodiversity as themes within their education, helping them become active participants in their community.

The installation was made possible with funding provided by the Nineveh Charitable Trust, Ernest Cook Trust, Tesco Bags of Help, and Timberplay Scotland. Initial development of the project was funded through the Central Scotland Green Network (CSGN) Ideas Fund, which was created to inspire innovative environmental projects. The 2016 competition focused on artists and creative professionals in celebration of Scotland’s Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design.