Hi Bulb Buddies,

I want to say a big thank you to all the schools who sent entries in for our new video competition. It was extremely hard to choose between them, but everyone involved with the project voted and the results were:

Winners:

Clare Primary School

Runner up:

St Mary’s Church in Wales Primary (@StMarysCIWBJ)

Special Recognition:

Kirkmichael Primary

Our Lady’s RC Primary

Fantastic work Bulb Cast Buddies!

Professor Plant

Hi Bulb Buddies,

I want to say a big thank you to all the schools who took part in this year's Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation. 

Participating schools planted bulbs in October and then monitored and cared for these until they flowered. Pupils shared the heights of their plants and the dates that they flowered with us. They also took temperature and rainfall readings every day that they were in school from 1 November to 31 March, and uploaded this information to the Amgueddfa Cymru website. This data feeds into our nationwide study investigating the effects of a changing climate on the flowering dates of spring bulbs. 

Here are the schools who helped us this year: 

Winners

Wales: St. Mary's CiW Primary

England: Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School

Scotland: Gavinburn Primary School

N. Ireland: Portadown Integrated Primary School

Runner’s up

Wales: Cornist  Park  C.P

England: Roseacre Primary Academy 

Scotland: Our Lady's RC Primary School

N. Ireland: Sacred Heart Primary School - Omagh

Special Recognition:

Wales: 

Ysgol Gymraeg Tonyrefail

Ysgol Pennant

Ysgol San Sior

Ysgol Tycroes

England:

Fleet Wood Lane Primary 

Stanford in the Vale 

N. Ireland: 

Irvinestown Primary School

St Joseph and St James's Primary 

St Patrick's Primary School - Eskra

Highly Commended 

Wales:

Bedlinog Community Primary

Churchstoke CP School

Forden CiW Primary

Hafod Primary

Henllys CiW Primary

Llanfaes CP School

Peterston Super Ely CiW Primary

Pil Primary School

Raglan VC CiW Primary

Rhayader Primary

Upper Rhymney Primary

Ysgol Bryn Pennant

Ysgol Casmael (Sir Benfro)

Ysgol Gymraeg Aberystwyth

Ysgol Gymraeg Dewi Sant

Ysgol Gynradd Llandegfan

Ysgol Tir Morfa

England: 

Anchorsholme Academy

Eaton Valley Primary School

Educational Diversity

Ferndale Primary School

Kidgate Primary Academy

St John's CE Primary School

Sylvester Primary Academy

Scotland:

Abbey Primary School

Blacklands Primary School

Clare Primary School

Cortamlet Primary School

Cuthbertson Primary School

Doonfoot Primary School

Kirkhill Primary School

Kirkmichael Primary School

Langbank Primary School

Milton Primary School

Newmains Primary School

Newton Primary School

St Peter's Primary School

Whatriggs Primary School

Northern Ireland:

Carrick Primary School

Clonalig Primary School

St John's Primary School

St Mary's Primary School - Maguiresbridge

St Peter Primary School - Plumbridge

St Teresa's Primary - Craigavon

Tandragee Primary School

Super Scientists

Wales: 

Albert Primary

Blaendulais Primary

Creigiau Primary

Eveswell Primary

Hay on Wye CP School

Mount Street Junior School

Neyland Community School

NPTC Newtown College

Pembroke Dock Community School

St. Mary’s CiW School - Wrexham

St. Michael's RC Primary

Trelai Primary

Waldo Williams Primary

YGG Bronllwyn 

Ysgol Deiniol

Ysgol Glan Morfa (Conwy)

England: 

Halsnead Primary School

Hamstead Junior School

Northwood Community Primary School

Old Park Primary School

Phoenix Primary Schoo

Prescot Primary School

Rowley Hall Primary School

Temple Meadow Primary School

Waterloo Primary Academy

Scotland: 

Alloway Primary School

Bishopton Primary School

Elmvale Primary - Glasgow

Leslie Primary School

Livingston Village Primary School

Lochwinnoch Primary School

Logan Primary School

Our Lady and St Francis Primary School

Our Lady of Peace Primary

Underbank Primary School

Windyknowe Primary School

N. Ireland:

Grange Primary School Kilkeel

St Mary's Primary - Craigavon

St Mary's Primary School - Newry

Contributors 

Wales:

Alaw Primary

Bryn Celyn Primary

Ffynnon Taf Primary 

Glyncoed Primary

Hafod y Wern Community Primary

Johnston C.P. School

England: 

Childwall C of E Primary School

Cronton CE Primary School

Grange Primary School

Marton Primary Academy and Nursery

Roby Park Primary School

Shireland Technology Primary School

St Kentigern's Primary School

St Paul's C of E Academy

Summerhill Primary Academy

Scotland: 

Fordbank Primary School

Meldrum Primary School

St Conval's Primary School

St Cuthbert's Primary School

St John Ogilvie Primary School

St Patrick's Primary - Troon

St Vincent's Primary School

Northern Ireland:

St Paul's Primary School

Willowbridge Special School

by Sam, Mark, Hannah and Caitlin Amguedfa Cymru-Museum Wales volunteers

We are four volunteers who answered the volunteering opportunity advert on the Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales website, organised by Elizabeth Walker, Principal Curator at the Museum. The opportunity was to help sort through and catalogue a collection of prehistoric stone tools.

The tools are from the substantial collection made by Henry Stopes, a private collector, in the late 19th Century. There are estimated to be between 50,000 to 70,000 artefacts, with half a million years of history, mostly British, but the collection also contains some mysterious overseas objects.

Each Thursday, with Elizabeth, we spend three hours sorting through the boxes, numbering and categorising each item. It is exciting work and is often stopped when someone finds something so unusual, they want to share it with the group. Such as a Neolithic polished axe head, broken and then clearly recycled or even a Neolithic carved ball. Elizabeth will always help us identify and assist with interesting facts about the stone tools. As we work we also hold interesting discussions which have so far ranged from Beyonce to Boer War; Neanderthals to Korean horror films! Who knows what next weeks’ topics will be.

We, as volunteers, feel fortunate to have this opportunity to be involved in this hands-on museum work, to offer our time and to be part of the recording of the Henry Stopes collection which will help with future stone tool research. Not only is this opportunity an interesting way to see how the behind the scenes works at a museum, the knowledge gained is incredibly useful to our future careers in archaeology. The amount we have all learned from just 3 hours a week is much larger than we would have thought.

So far we have sorted, repackaged and documented 4,659 tools and entered 2,265 new entries into the collection database. 

“March brings breezes, loud and shrill, 
To stir the dancing daffodil.” Sara Coleridge, The Garden Year 

March is Most Likely the Gardener's Busiest Month!

This month has consisted of sowing, sowing, and more sowing! We've sown different varieties of tomatoes, aubergines, runner beans, chilies, watermelons, salad leaves, herbs, and roots (to name a few!). Most have started life in propagators in the orange container (more on that later) or in the polytunnel, as most seedlings prefer a warm environment to germinate. Hardier seeds like spinach have been directly sown outside.

Move Over, Marvin Gaye!

Ani and Laurence expertly pruned the grapevine in the polytunnel. This is the time to cut back the vine to encourage new growth. Don't be afraid to cut back more than you think. The rule of thumb is to choose a few of the strongest canes to leave and prune the rest. Typically, people choose 10 to 12 good canes and shorten them to four or five buds each.

The Hügelkultur Method

We tried the Hügelkultur method with our raised beds alongside the glass panels of the colonnade. In Hügelkultur, you layer different organic materials together, which will slowly release nutrients into the soil for years to come. To try it yourself, simply add a base layer of cardboard, wood such as logs and smaller dried twigs, and hay or grass cuttings, followed by green organic material. Then layer a lot of compost and topsoil, and you're ready to plant. Please note that the soil level will fall as the layers decompose. In this case, simply add another layer of soil to the top.

Bye-Bye, Orange!

This month has seen us update one of the staples in the GRAFT garden: the orange container. Over the years, the vibrant orange container has, well, become a bit tired and showed its age. So we decided to give it a facelift and employed the expertise of brothers Hassan and Kareem, who designed and painted the container. It's turned some heads and really given the garden a new lease on life! The design reflects the important elements of the garden and connects to nature.

A Cockleshell Pathway

We took delivery of some Penclawdd cockles to build a cockleshell pathway, making the garden more accessible, especially on rainy days. This will be an ongoing project, so watch this space!

Natural Dyes Workshop

On Thursday, March 14th, GRAFT volunteers visited the National Wool Museum in Drefach to learn about natural dyes and how to incorporate them into the GRAFT garden.

Susan taught everyone about the natural dyeing process using different plants. Then, everyone had a go at dyeing wool themselves in various colors. They even gave GRAFT seeds to get started, which we plan to plant this month!

Chai and Chat Takeover 

We are fortunate to be able to work with and host many community events and groups here at the Waterfront Museum! We're even more fortunate to offer them a taste of different aspects of the museum. On Wednesday, March 27th, the Chai and Chat group, which meets weekly at the museum, visited GRAFT and helped plant some seeds, transplant tomato seedlings, move strawberry plants, and harvest salad from our polytunnel. We're excited to welcome them back to the garden in the future!

Farewell, Zoë!

March also sees us sadly say farewell to one of the project founders, Zoë, who will be leaving the museum for new adventures! She leaves a great legacy in GRAFT and will be missed by all the volunteers, partners, and staff who use the garden.

I will be updating readers every month or two months with the general work we have done in the garden. We will pass on information we have learnt, things we have done well (and not so well) and any tips for budding gardeners (or experienced gardeners) out there to take to your own green space. I will also include a seasonal recipe from The Shared Plate using ingredients from GRAFT. 

What was the weather like in 2023?

2023 was warm and wet! It saw record breaking temperatures in June, a heat wave in September and eleven named storms! It was the second warmest year for the UK since records began in 1884, with only 2022 coming in warmer. It was the warmest year on record for Wales and Northern Ireland and some parts of the UK saw over a third more rain than they would normally expect.

What were the named storms?

The named storms that visited the UK in 2023 were Otto (February), Noa (April), Antoni & Betty (August), Agnes (September), Babet (October), Ciaran & Debi (November), Elin, Fergus & Gerrit (December).

‘Storm Season’ runs from September of one year to August of the next. This coincides nicely with the time frame of our Investigation, which runs for a full academic year. From September 2022 to August 2023 there were four named storms. From September 2023 to now, there have already been eleven named storms! This makes for some very interesting weather data collection and observations from our participating schools! The storms to take place so far in 2024 are Henk, Isha & Jocelyn (January), and Kathleen (April).

Who chooses the storm names?

The MET Office began naming storms for the UK in 2015. They release a list of planned names at the beginning of each storm season. Other European countries also name storms, and if the same storm later impacts on one of these countries, then they will adopt the name already in use. This happened in 2023 with storm Otto and storm Noah, which were named by different groups.

You can suggest names to the MET Office for the next Storm Season here: Name our Storms - Met Office

Why are storms named?

Storms are named to raise awareness. Research shows that people hear about named storms more widely and better understand the link between the storm and the issues it causes across the UK. People understand that a named storm is expected to be disruptive, and they are more likely to take actions to prepare for the bad weather. Whether or not a storm is named depends on the impact it’s expected to have. Not only wind speeds, but things like where the storm is expected to occur, the time of year, time of day and even the day of the week can all impact on the decision of whether the storm will be named!

What are the next planned storm names for the 2023/24 storm season?

Lilian, Minnie, Nicholas, Olga, Piet, Regina, Stuart, Tamiko, Vincent and Walid.

Interestingly, four of this seasons storm names (Ciaran, Debi, Regina and Stuart) have been chosen in honour of people who have been recognised for helping to protect others from extreme weather.

What comments have schools shared about these storms?

Cuthbertson Primary: A tree was blown up in our garden, revealing its roots and posing a threat to safety. We have limited access to the bulbs until the tree is secured. Two storms in one week, the highest wind we have ever felt. Storm Isha and Jacqueline. We have the beginnings of green sprouts showing though.

Alloway Primary: Stormy weather this week. Inside for play due to high winds and rain.

Irvinestown Primary: We weren’t able to record weather data this week due to storm Isha and Storm Jocelyn. Our potted bulbs all tumbled over and fell out of their pots and the weather recording equipment was also affected. We are aiming to get all back up and running again as soon as possible.

Kirkmichael Primary: What a week it has been. We have had two storms, so much wind and rain and even some power cuts. Our rain gauge had fallen over on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday because of the wind, so we discussed how we can wedge it into the soil more effectively. It was also getting warmer towards the end of the week.

Doonfoot Primary: We have had TWO storms this week which has meant that we have had lots and lots of rain. The temperature is definitely increasing as the weeks progress. No blooms yet. Our Mystery Bulbs have been growing and we already have a list of guesses snowdrops, bluebells, narcissi and...more crocuses just to fool us.

Kirkmichael Primary: What a week for the weather. Overnight on Wednesday into Thursday we hit lows of -14. So very cold, although we feel like once it hits a certain (low) temperature it doesn’t feel any more cold. We are hoping though that this extreme cold hasn’t damaged our bulbs, and hope to see some signs of growth soon. Next week we have a weather storm forecast - lots of crazy weather.

St Mary's Primary: Storm Debi was Monday.

YGG Bronllwyn: Bad storms with thunder and lightning on Thursday.

St John Ogilvie Primary: Very heavy rain. Storm conditions.

Fleet Wood Lane Primary:We seem to have survived Storm Ciaran on this side of the country.