A belated blog but definitely worth a mention.
A group of WESC students completed their year long Entry Level 3 OCR in caring for plants this summer down in the WESC garden.

One of their first tasks was to be able to care for plant material. This involved checking the plant material by feeling the state and texture of the earth, soil and plant leaves. They learned how to stabilise newly potted plants and to use different techniques for watering.

 

The next stage was to be able to work safely minimising the risks to themselves and others.

They used different strategies to work safely such as working on raised beds, using table top trays and following instructions.

Some of the students broke the compost up with their hands, mixing with other mediums like perlite and horticultural grit before putting it in the pots and others used a very effective scooping method.

They used the appropriate protective gardening gloves and learned to work effectively and safely with small hand tools. 

The students also learned to clean tools after using them and storing them appropriately.

And the final task was to dispose of debris appropriately which they did by locating the main compost and putting any debris into a wheelbarrow ready for transferring there. 

They received their well deserved certificates