Blog: Learning

After a year (2024) of creating incredible St Fagan’s inspired textile and mixed media art Cutting Edge members gathered at the Gweithdy Gallery, St Fagans National Museum of History on 25th & 26th April to exhibit their work and to provide craft and sewing activities for visitors in celebration of Global Intergenerational Week. And what an awesome two days it was!

Visitors were delighted to be able to view the exhibits close up and to read the workbooks describing how the project developed over time. They were also delighted that they could join in the various activities and we received lots of feedback over the two days, both in conversation and the Visitors Book. Here's a taste of what people said:

“As a fellow quilter and textile artist it is lovely to go out and see everyone’s work. Congratulations." Lesley , Higham Quilters, Gloucester
“Very impressive to see such a stunning piece of local inspiration and imaginative work” Byron family
“Fabulous exhibition. Well done all. Thank you for making us feel so welcome“ Sue & Vicki
 
The children tried out most things from colouring to stamping and sewing, which seemed to be a crowd pleaser. After colouring a picture on fabric many were eager to have a go at sewing and soon became hooked!
One little girl drew a large letter E on a textile square and began sewing it. She was disappointed to be dragged away half way though, but took some threads to finish it at home. However, later in the day she reappeared to pick up some more thread as she had run out of one of the colours. She must have found a little corner on her travels around the grounds to continue her sewing!
The adults enjoyed the sewing too!
The group from Pontadawe stitch group thoroughly enjoyed making brooches and owls:
“What a wonderful exhibition, so inspiring. Thank you for my owl/penguin. I love him! You are all a lovely bunch. Diolch yn fawr I chi gyd“!" Glenda , Stitch Pontadawe. 
“What a lovely event. Thanks for the brooch kit. I really enjoyed making it. All lovely friendly people” Dawn

Plenty of owls appeared thanks to Carol. They were so popular that she had to go home on Friday evening to prepare more!
“Thank you Carol for helping me make my owl!.

There was some great colouring and sketching going on. Pat's little leather bound sketch books were as popular as Carol’s owls. Not surprising as they were a fabulous little gift to take home.
“Lovely day out with lots of great crafts, the children really enjoyed themselves. Thank you so much"

The Cutting Edge members weren’t shy of immersing themselves in the activities either. They thoroughly enjoyed chatting to visitors too as it was an opportunity to pass on tips, advise and direct them to resources. One visitor was planning to repair altar cloths and was delighted to be introduced to another visitor who could help her find the braids that she needed.
Some feedback from the Cutting Edge group members: 
“I enjoyed the afternoon. A lovely way to spend it. I loved looking at the exhibits again and had fun stamping!” Sally
“It was a fun day with so much interest and appreciation… met some lovely people, some commenting that they were inspired to try something creative themselves and very polite children who all said thank you for helping them. Loved it” Ella.
“What a lovely time spent today meeting visitors who were so interested in our groups work. So many were amazed at the range of different textile / art skills exhibited.  My favourite moment though is the young boy in the photo above who was determined to stitch around his daffodils before leaving . So good to have had the opportunity to encourage the youngsters."  Liz
“Such a great couple of days and so many people leaving inspired to carry on stitching." Eleri

The Monopoly quilt was popular and a number of suggestions were made for a permanent home for it, though many were of the view that it should stay at St Fagans.
“Fantastic range of work and skills. Really enjoyed the whole exhibition especially the Monopoly quilt." Lesley, Rhoose
Carol’s stitched family tree project was also popular. Carol was overwhelmed by the repose she received. As a result the seeds of a workshop are now forming!

Over the two days we welcomed over 650 visitors who came from near and far, some as far as the Netherlands!
Two Dutch ladies who visited wanted to buy pieces of our art work. When we asked what they were interested in they pointed to Dianne’s postcard and Monica’s Thomas the Taylor post card. The cards were gifted to the ladies and addresses were swapped with a promise from Monica and Dianne that they would post them a fabric postcard too!
A brilliant two days enjoyed by both visitors and Cutting Edge members alike. 

A huge thank you to:
St Fagan’s staff member Loveday who went above and beyond to make sure that we had everything we needed. She even joined in and helped when we were very busy, which was really appreciated!
Jan’s husband Alan for taking photos for us. They are a fabulous addition to our album!
And an enormous thank you to all our amazing Cutting Edge members for their inspired pieces of work and dedication to make the two day event at St Fagans such a memorable occasion. You are all stars!

We held the event during Global Intergenerational Week which fell at the end of the Easter holiday. It certainly ticked all the boxes for intergenerational engagement as both children and adults went away happy and more confident with the new skills they had acquired.

“Fabulous exhibition and lovely to see the skills on show. Lovely initiative and great for children of all ages to experience”!
"Fantastisch!" Lia, the Netherlands
“Superb inspiring exhibition. I enjoyed the diversity too – patterns, stitch, water colours. Also enjoyed the hands-on activities. Relaxing and fun.” Gwynedd
“Such an excellent event, with wonderful pieces of work to admire and inspire! So kind and generous to supply everything for the intergenerational projects we did” Caroline
“Excellent exhibition. Lovely talented ladies”

Following the event, we were delighted to receive the image of the event sent by Mike who is a member of the St Fagans Sketching Group. He visited on the Saturday and sat quietly in the corner sketching the scene before him. He thought our work, like his, was amazing:
“I had the opportunity to visit the exhibition of members work from the Cutting Edge Textile Group at St Fagans. It was a beautiful day, and the event was very popular with families enjoying the last of the Easter holidays. There were lots of fun activities for children and adults. I was encouraged to visit the Cutting Edge Textile group exhibition to see what they do by a member of the CE group who attends the St Fagans Sketching Group. The answer is a lot and to a very high standard too! Everyone was so kind in sharing their work. I have got loads of ideas and tried to capture the event in my sketchbook” Instagram @mikelinewalker

End note:
Monica posted a fabric postcard to one of the Dutch women who visited our exhibition and surprisingly it arrived before she returned home to the Netherlands! This is the email Monica received from Thea:
“Dear Monica,
It was a surprise to find that the card you sent me has arrived already when I came home from my holiday tour through Wales. 
It was very nice to meet you at the exhibition and that I was allowed to make a choice out of the cards you had made. All in all it was a very inspiring exhibition and I enjoyed it very much.
The cards I will show tomorrow to the members of the quilt club I join and I am sure they will love them as well. I still have to find a nice place to put them. It will be in my house or in my school where I will enjoy looking at them, but I am not sure yet.
Best wishes, also to the other members of the Cutting Edge Textile Group
Thea“

To find out more about the Cutting Edge Group please visit: Cutting Edge | Sharing textiles knowledge, ideas and skills

Celebrating positive mental wellbeing through engaging with heritage, creativity and community on Diwrnod Santes Dwynwen:

On 25^th January 2025 Amgueddfa Cymru marked Diwrnod Santes Dwynwen, the day for the Welsh Patron Saint of Love, with a festival to celebrate positive mental wellbeing supported by creativity, heritage and community. Across various of our seven museums, different activities and performances took place, designed to eliminate stress, improve mood and help people deal with everyday challenges. These included collections-inspired creative arts workshops, music recitals, choir performances, blacksmithing taster sessions and poetry workshops. In addition to this, we also hosted information marketplaces at St Fagans and Big Pit where organisations offering services to support peoples’ wellbeing could engage with the public and share information and advice.

St Fagans

At St Fagans we welcomed the Sally’s Angels Community Choir to St Fagans who sang on the Community Stage in the entrance hall of the museum as visitors arrived in the morning. This was followed by further performances on site at Penrhiw Chapel and the Oakdale Workmen’s Institute later in the day. The choir performed a range of songs in Welsh and English, including a stirring rendition of the ever-popular Calon Lan. Visitors responded really positively to the joyful and uplifting atmosphere the choir created throughout the day. Thank you to all the wonderful choir members who helped to make it such a special event.

The information stand marketplace also took place in the main entrance hall, with several organisations hosting drop-in craft activities such as decorating cardboard heart-shaped frames. These activities were very popular with children and adults alike and enabled the partner organisations to talk with visitors about their services in more detail as people spent time at the stands engaging in the crafts on offer. There was a total of eight stands, which included Velindre Cancer Centre, Oasis Cardiff, the Hapus Project (Public Health Wales), Memory Jar dementia support group, Mydiad Mythrin/Cymraeg i Blant, the Wales Ambulance Service and Platform  - the mental health charity, as well as a Museum stand promoting the Amgueddfa Cymru Health and Wellbeing programme, in particular the Museums Inspiring Memories Project. 

We estimate that in total the marketplace engaged with approximately 165 people throughout the course of the day. 

Across the day various activities took place at St Fagans which aimed to provide a stress-free environment to enjoy and engage with the museum's collections in a creative way. These included wool craft and weaving workshops using our replica Iron Aged handlooms, mindful nature walks exploring the outside spaces, flora and fauna at the museum, and a make your own paper Love Spoon workshop inspired by the Love Spoon collection in the Gwiethdy gallery, run by artist Nia Skyrme. 

The weaving workshops where participants were able to make their own woolen bookmark to take home proved very popular.  The feedback was very positive with many people sharing how relaxing and mindful they found the activity and how lovely it was to do something for themselves whilst spending time with family and friends. Many parents who took part in the session told us how lovely it was to do something they could have a go at themselves, alongside their children, learning a new skill and enjoying the creative process together. The children who took part appeared to be very engaged, enjoying the workshops and leaving very pleased with their woolly bookmarks! 

Participants on the mindful nature walks reported how relaxing and peaceful they found the experiences, whilst also being interesting and informative. Ian Daniel, who led the walks, was able to share mindfulness techniques which participants could take away with them and build into their daily lives, as well as sharing interesting facts about the flora and fauna they encountered on their walk. 

Artist Nia Skyrme, who led the drop-in Love Spoon activity in Gweithdy, had a very busy afternoon with at least 95 people dropping in throughout the session to take part. Participants made beautiful paper love spoons representing what they held important, inspired by the lovely display in the Gweithdy gallery next door to the workshop space. 

Families with older children were able to engage in this accessible art activity together, whilst giving those parents of very young children an opportunity to peacefully enjoy a creative activity whilst their little ones slept. It was a lovely way to encourage visitors to connect with the collections in a different way; the feedback was very positive.

The weather on 25^th January was absolutely beautiful. The sun shone all day, attracting lots of visitors to St. Fagans - far more than we might usually expected on a late January day. This gave the festival such a boost and allowed us to promote ‘museums for wellbeing’ to a wide audience.

Big Pit

At Big Pit a range of drop-in and bookable activities were on offer. 

Throughout the day, Len Howell, who has over 50 years experience of working as a colliery blacksmith, led smithing sessions in the forge at Big Pit. These were pitched at helping men deal with stress by participating in physical activity and ‘hitting the anvil hard’. With guidance, participants were able to work with hot steel and make a mini heart to take home. 

Poet Patrick Jones led ‘Writing for Wellbeing’ workshops designed to beat the January blues. Through a fun and light workshop of reading, listening and discussing poems, participants also took part in writing exercises designed to lift the spirits. Participants all reported that their level of contentedness and happiness had risen by the end of the workshop, and everyone was happy to share their thoughts and feelings in a short film that was made on the day.

Families took part in a ‘Make a Love Spoon’ activity, and found out about the various symbols and meanings, before designing and making their own. This engaging activity gave people the chance to relax and chat to workshop leaders, and many people also took the opportunity to dress up in mining costumes against a historic backdrop, whilst exploring the theme of ‘Cynefin’ (Belonging.) 

A number of organisations who can help with positive mental wellbeing and signpost to further information attended the marketplace on the day. 

Andy’s Man Club, Torfaen Take a Stroll walking group, Sport in Mind, Torfaen Talks CIC, Alzheimer’s Society Cymru & Public Health Wales all had opportunities to engage with the public and promote the support, advice and guidance they provide. Visitors enjoyed having a play (or the odd more serious tournament) on the table tennis table supplied by Sport in Mind. Public Health Wales were able to encourage organisations to sign up as Hapus supporters.

National Wool Museum 

At the National Wool Museum, visitors were invited to grab a cuppa, pick up a heart shaped Welsh cake and listen to the soothing melodies of harpist Delyth Jenkins. Delyth performed throughout the day, and gave the Museum a sense of peace and calm, which was very much appreciated by visitors. 

National Museum Cardiff

At National Museum Cardiff we took the opportunity to trial our newly developed Mindful Art Trail. Louise Rogers, one of our facilitators in the Learning team has spent time over the past year developing the resources for what will become a self-led trail and invitation to experience the art galleries in a mindful way. On the day, Louise led 2 guided mindful trails, encouraging participants to look at art purely from a mindful perspective, without any pressure, and to enjoy the simple art of ‘looking’.

According to research, most people view a work of art for approximately seven seconds, but the session encouraged people to take longer to look and absorb what they were seeing, instead of rushing though the galleries. This opened up discovery of more detail in each work, and using the senses and imagination allowed people to visualise potential stories about the artworks. This was a new experience for all participants, and everyone relaxed into their own way of interacting with the art. We hope that resources like these will encourage people to view the galleries as a safe and non-judgmental space to take a break from busy daily routines, and to enjoy moments of calm.

Diolch to all our fantastic partner organisations, the members of the wonderful Sally’s Angels Choir, the brilliant workshop leaders and all those who came and took part. We couldn’t have done it without you. 

People who attended the events at the different museums shared that they appreciated being able to drop into sessions free of charge, taking away the stress of entertaining children during difficult financial times.

A special thanks to the Public Health Wales Hapus Project for supporting the festival with funding, enabling us to offer more opportunities and work with the freelance creatives who helped make the event such a success. Follow the link to find out more about the Hapus Project and sign up as a supporter. 

Thanks also to all the museum staff who supported the event, led sessions and helped with the logistics on the day. 

As a legacy of the festival, we have produced a series of short films which are launching during Mental Health Awareness Week. Thank you to Glyn Roberts and Tom Maloney for working to capture all the wonderful activities and beautiful moments shared during the day. We’re excited to share the results! 

We will also be working on developing mindfulness resources in collaboration with Mindfulness Wales for our museums as well as welcoming freelance creatives to deliver dementia friendly wellbeing workshops inspired by our collections. Watch this space for further details. 

Hi Bulb Buddies,

As we reach the final day of weather data collection, we want to extend a huge thank you to all the schools that have participated in this year’s Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation. Your dedication to the project has been invaluable, and we truly appreciate the effort you’ve put in.

Final Data Submission

Now that the recording period is ending, we kindly ask you to upload all your collected data (both weather and flower records) as soon as possible. If your plants haven’t flowered yet, don’t worry. Please let us know, and when they do bloom, you can still enter the flowering data (in millimetres). Every data entry is important and helps make this citizen science project a success.

Bulbcast Competition

If you have created a Bulbcast entry, don’t forget to submit it! We’re happy to receive entries via email, WeTransfer, or shared links – whatever works best for you. If you’ve had any issues sharing your submission, please get in touch so we can help. 

Check Your Data

To ensure your data is complete, you can review your school’s graph on the project website. Remember, prizes will be allocated based on the data entered, so make sure everything is up to date.

Bulb Care Resources

Even though data collection is ending, there are other tasks for you to enjoy. We have plenty of resources on our website, including tips on how to care for your bulbs after flowering. Remember to repurpose your pots after your plants have flowered. We will be sending sunflower seeds to all schools who have submitted weather and flower data and extra seeds to high performing schools, so the pots can have another role to play here!  You can also save the pots and use them if you are taking part in next year’s project.  

February Weather Summary

As we reach the end of March lets take a peek at last month’s weather. February is the month that sees us transition from winter to spring, and this was reflected in the weather we saw. 

The temperature for the first two weeks was lower than average, but the warmer weather in the second half of the month means that the overall temperature for February was above average. Northern Ireland was the warmest country with temperatures 0.9°C above average. 

At the beginning of the month Scottland saw freezing conditions and snow. Mid-month Northern Ireland and England saw heavy rain and strong winds. Towards the end of the month Wales saw heavy rains and some flooding. The end of the month saw more settled weather with some fog and frost. 

February saw below average rainfall, with Northern England seeing nearly half of the expected rainfall. 

Sunlight hours increased throughout the month, reaching just under the long term average for the UK. Scotland was the sunniest country this month. 

Once again, thank you for your fantastic work as part of this year’s Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation. We couldn’t do it without you, and we hope you’ve enjoyed being part of this scientific adventure!

Please let us know if you have any questions or need support.

Professor Plant

Hi Bulb Buddies,

Thank you for all the weather data you have entered to the website so far. Please try to get all your data uploaded this week, as The Edina Trust will be using it to predict when our plants might flower!

I have seen my first daffodil in bloom this week! This feels very early. Have any of you seen any early signs of spring? Please let me know what you've seen and how your plants are doing when you share your comments this week. Do any of your plants have flower buds forming yet? You can use resources on the website to help prepare for taking flower records: Step 5: Keeping flower records (January - March)

Are you taking part in the BulbCast competition this year? If so, you could take video footage of your plants at different stages to use in your entry. I can't wait to see what you come up with. Remember to read the supporting resources that outline how the task can be structured so that everyone has a role to play: Bulbcast competition

January saw some dramatic weather, and this was reflected in your weather comments (see these below). Lots of you reported school closures, powerful winds, low temperatures and some reported snow and frost! Many of you were impacted by Storm Eowyn on the 24th of the month. This was the fifth named storm this storm season (September-August) and the first red warning for wind in 2025. Wind speeds of over 90mph were recorded in parts of Northern Ireland, Wales, and Scotland, and a 100mph gust was recorded in Drumalbin, Lanarkshire!

Days after storm Eowyn, storm Herminia reached the UK bringing heavy rain to parts of England and Wales. Some of you may have wondered why the storm names jumped from E to H! This is because storm Herminia had already been named by the Spanish Meteorological Service before it reached us. The next storm named by the UK will be Storm Floris! More information on named storms can be found here: Weathering the Storm

January Weather Summary

> January’s temperatures were colder than usual. All four nations recorded below-average temperatures, making it a chilly start to the year. 

A fascinating fact for our Spring Bulb scientists: what we now consider a "cold" January would have been considered average in the past. The 1961-1990 January mean temperature was 3°C (the average for this year), while today’s 1991-2020 average is 3.9°C (making this year 0.9°C bellow the average). This highlights how climate patterns are shifting over time!

> Rainfall was mixed across the country. Southern England experienced above-average rainfall, while Scotland and Northern Ireland were much drier than usual.

> Despite the cold and stormy spells, January turned out to be one of the sunniest on record! The UK saw 61.8 hours of sunshine, making it the fifth sunniest January since records began in 1910. 

A fascinating fact for our Spring Bulb scientists: four of the five sunniest Januarys have all occurred in the 21st century (that's since January 2001).

Keep up the great work observing and recording your data Bulb Buddies!

Professor Plant

Comments from schools:

Storm and School Closures

Irvinestown Primary School: School was closed on Friday due to the red weather warning.
Professor Plant: It’s always best to stay safe during severe weather! I hope you were able to check on your plants when you returned.

Logan Primary School: We were not at school on Friday due to the storm.
Professor Plant: I hope you and your plants were safe from the storm. Did you notice any changes in your garden when you returned?

Scarva Primary School: We had to close on Friday because of Storm Eowyn and a red weather warning so we could not record weather data.
Professor Plant: Storms can be very disruptive! I appreciate you keeping track of the data when possible.

St Mary’s Primary – Maguiresbridge:We were unable to get a reading on Friday as the school was off with the storm (Eowyn). We have lost some plants and pots because they have been lifted with the wind.
Professor Plant: Oh no! I’m sorry to hear about the damage. Hopefully, you can replant some bulbs, and they’ll still have a chance to grow!

Meldrum Primary School: Bad storm on Friday, could not get any data.
Professor Plant: That’s understandable! I hope your plants weren’t damaged. Did you notice any effects on your garden afterward?

St John’s Primary: No weather recorded for Friday 24th as school was closed due to the storm.
Professor Plant: That’s okay! It’s always important to stay safe in bad weather.

Wellshot Primary School: School was closed on Friday because of the storm.
Professor Plant: I hope the storm didn’t cause too much damage to your plants!

Langbank Primary School: Our school was closed on Friday because of Storm Eowyn so we did not get the weather data.
Professor Plant: I appreciate you updating me despite the closure. Well done for staying safe during the storm. 

Ysgol Porth Y Felin: We had a big storm last night.
Professor Plant: I hope your plants made it through safely! Storms can bring a lot of rain, which can be helpful or harmful depending on how strong the wind is.

Stanford in the Vale Primary: We had Storm Eowyn on Friday.
Professor Plant: I hope you and your plants were okay! Did you notice any changes when you came back to school?

Ysgol Gymraeg Morswyn: Dim cofnod ar dydd Gwener oherwydd fod yr ysgol ar gau oherwydd Storm Eowyn. (No record on Friday because the school was closed due to Storm Eowyn.)
Professor Plant: Diolch am roi gwybod i mi. Mae'n bwysig cadw'n ddiogel yn ystod stormydd. (Thanks for letting me know. It is important to stay safe during storms.)

Cold and Icy Weather

Doonfoot Primary School: It was freezing.
Professor Plant: Sounds like a chilly week! Did you notice frost on the ground or your plants?

Ysgol Tycroes: This week has been very cold. We have had snow and most mornings have been very frosty. The temperature has been as low as -1°C.
Professor Plant: Frosty mornings can be beautiful but challenging for plants! Well done for braving the cold to get your readings!

Pil Primary School: The weather has been very cold this week.
Professor Plant: Cold weather can slow plant growth. I wonder if you’ll see a change once it warms up! 

Cornist Park C.P: “There is a lot of snow and it is very cold, it feels like -1 degrees.” “We have had snow, rain, sleet, and hail, the wind is making it feel like -1 degrees.” “Today the hail has frozen the roads and they are icy, it is very cold.” “The ice on the path and road is very slippy, it is cold.” “We have ice and it is very cold, the wind makes it feel like -5 degrees.”

Professor Plant: Thank you all for sharing your weather comments. It sounds like quite a chilly week with the snow and icy conditions! Make sure to stay safe and warm everyone, and well done for collecting your weather readings in these cold temperatures!

Stanford in the Vale Primary: Very cold and the ice has settled in.

Professor Plant: Stay careful on those icy paths! It’s important to stay safe in these conditions. 

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: Lots of snow and ice covering our rain gauge all week.

Professor Plant: It sounds like you've had quite a bit of snow! Remember to bring your rain gauge inside for the snow to melt. Do you think the reading will be higher or lower once the snow has melted? 

Meldrum Primary School: A lot of rain and snow at the start of the week and pretty cold throughout the week.

Professor Plant: Rain and snow can sometimes create difficult conditions, but it’s a good opportunity to observe how the weather affects both the plants and the surroundings. Well done Bulb Buddies. 

Observations of Rain and Wet Conditions

Gavinburn Primary School: Normal weather for this time of year.
Professor Plant: It’s great that you are noticing seasonal patterns! Do you think this will help predict when your plants will flower?

Cornist Park C.P: It has been very cold and lots of rain this week. Our plants must feel cold.
Professor Plant: Plants can be quite hardy in the cold! They’ll start growing faster once it warms up.

Ysgol Porth Y Felin: Very wet.
Professor Plant: Lots of rain can help plants grow, but too much might cause waterlogging. Keep an eye on them!

Stanford in the Vale Primary: A lotta rain this week, mate.
Professor Plant: Rainy weeks can be great for plant growth! Did you see any changes in your garden, mateys?

Plant Growth and Gardening Observations

Ysgol Tycroes: All of our bulbs have sprouted stems and leaves. We have been learning about what a plant needs to grow strong and how a plant makes its own food called photosynthesis.
Professor Plant: That’s fantastic! Photosynthesis is key to plant survival. I’m excited to hear how your plants continue to grow.

Ysgol Pennant: Roedden ni wedi plannu yr planhigyn oedd wedi chwythu ffwrdd ar y dydd mawrth. (We replanted the plant that had blown away on Tuesday.)
Professor Plant: Gwaith da! Gobeithio bydd y planhigyn yn parhau i dyfu. (Well done! I hope the plant continues to grow.)

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: We can see some sprouts opening.
Professor Plant: That’s wonderful! Your plants are making great progress. Keep watching for their next stage of growth.

St Mary’s Primary – Maguiresbridge: We have noticed that the bulbs have all started to sprout.
Professor Plant: That’s exciting news! Keep an eye on your bulbs, they are on their way to flowering.

Henllys Church in Wales: Plants coming through.
Professor Plant: Great to hear! Keep monitoring them for new growth.

Langbank Primary School: Most of the pots/bulbs are starting to grow
Professor Plant: Fantastic news! Keep an eye on them!

Ysgol Tycroes: Nearly all of our bulbs now have shoots coming out of them.

Professor Plant: Wonderful news about the bulbs! Keep up the good work!

Ysgol Llanddulas: Some of our bulbs have grown a lot. No flowers still.

Professor Plant: That’s fantastic progress! Bulbs are getting ready to bloom, but sometimes they take a little more time to flower. Keep observing them, and I’m sure you’ll see the flowers soon enough.

Data Collection

St Joseph's Cathedral: We are very sorry that we have forgotten to record these past weeks. Once again, we are deeply sorry for the inconvenience that we have made for your research.
Professor Plant: That’s okay! Thank you for letting me know. Keeping records is a great habit, and I appreciate your efforts.

Ysgol Llanddulas: I did this on Monday because we had a new teacher on Friday, and they did not know how to log us on.
Professor Plant: No worries! It’s great that you caught up with the data.

Roaring Reptiles - Ysgol Llanddulas:We did not get weather records on Friday because our school shut due to a burst water pipe.
Professor Plant: That sounds like an unexpected event! I hope everything was fixed quickly.

Ysgol Porth Y Felin: We had no school on Monday and then 2 snow days.
Professor Plant: Snow days are always exciting! Did you notice any effects on your plants afterward?

Hello Bulb Buddies,

We hope you’re enjoying taking part in the Spring Bulbs for Schools Investigation. This project helps us all learn more about how the weather affects the growth of plants—and your observations play a key role!

As part of the project, please remember to upload your weather data to the Amgueddfa Cymru website. By uploading the data collected so far, we can use it to predict when our plants might flower. It’s exciting to think that your contributions will be part of a bigger picture encompassing schools from across the UK. Your data is really important to us, so please upload everything you’ve documented so far by the end of January!

A Month of Wild Weather

Let’s take a moment to look at the weather from December. It was an eventful month, and this has had an impact on our gardens and bulbs. Here’s a quick weather overview:

- Storm Darragh (6th–8th December) brought heavy rain and severe gales (wind), especially to Wales and southwest England. It was the fourth named storm of the season, and it caused disruption from damaging winds and a lot of rainfall. A rare red weather warning was issued during this multi-hazard event.

- After Storm Darragh, the weather calmed and we saw colder conditions, with frost and freezing fog, especially in Scotland.

- December overall was milder (warmer) than average, with a provisional mean temperature 2.0°C above the long-term average. This made it one of the warmest Decembers on record! 

- Rainfall was also above average. Flooding occurred in parts of northwest England and Scotland on the 30th and 31st due to heavy rain.

- It was a dull month, meaning there was less sunshine than average (a total of only 24.3 hours of sunshine!)

What Does This Mean for Our Spring Bulbs?

All this rain and mild weather might mean that our bulbs could flower a bit earlier than expected! It’s important to keep measuring and recording your data to see how the conditions in your area compare to others across the UK.

A Few Tips for Uploading Your Data:

- Double-check your rainfall and temperature measurements before uploading.

- Add any interesting comments about what you’ve noticed in your garden - has the weather affected your bulbs?

- Don’t forget to upload your data weekly to the Amgueddfa Cymru website so that we can all track the progress together.

Looking Ahead

Remember to look out for early signs of spring and share these either with your comments, by email or on X/Twitter. We’re expecting more growth from our plants throughout January, so remember to keep a close eye on them.

Happy investigating!

Professor Plant

December's comments:

Bulb Growth Observations:

Langbank Primary School: Most of the pots/bulbs are starting to grow.
Professor Plant: Fantastic news! Your bulbs are waking up, spring must be just around the corner. 

Ysgol Tycroes: Nearly all of our bulbs now have shoots coming out of them.
Professor Plant: Well done! Shoots are a sign that your bulbs are healthy and happy. Keep observing for any changes.

Ysgol Llanddulas: Some of our bulbs have grown a lot. No flowers still.
Professor Plant: That’s perfectly normal. Flowers take time, so keep visiting your plants to see how they grow!

Henllys Church in Wales School: It felt a lot colder than it was this week, and our bulbs are trying to push through the soil.
Professor Plant: Bulbs are incredibly resilient! Even in cold weather, they’ll keep growing. Great observation!

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: Most of our plants have shoots now. We think they are mostly the daffodils pushing through.
Professor Plant: Spot on! Daffodils tend to grow quickly this time of year. It will be interesting to see if the crocus grow later but bloom first!

Langbank Primary School: We spotted signs of growth in some of our pots today and 2 of the bulbs planted in the ground.
Professor Plant: Brilliant! It’s exciting to see both potted and planted bulbs thriving. Well done for watching them!

Clonalig Primary School: Lots of bulbs are beginning to shoot up, and the mystery bulbs’ shoots are well up.
Professor Plant: How exciting! Mystery bulbs add a layer of fun and soon, you might be able to tell what they are. Keep observing closely.

St John The Baptist Primary School Portadown: We noticed some of our plants have some green shoots appearing.
Professor Plant: That’s excellent news! Green shoots are the first step towards a beautiful display. Keep up the good work!

Cold Weather and Ice:

Cornist Park C.P: There is a lot of snow, and it is very cold. The wind makes it feel like -1 degrees.
Professor Plant: Brrr! The snow can make things challenging for plants, but your bulbs are hardy and will continue growing underground. It's interesting how we feel the weather, some days feel colder to us even when the temperatures the same. This can be for reasons like wind chill, humidity, and sunlight.

Stanford in the Vale Primary School: Very cold, and the ice has settled in.
Professor Plant: It’s amazing how bulbs can survive icy weather. I hope you are all staying warm too!

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: Lots of snow and ice covering our rain gauge all week.
Professor Plant: Snow and ice can be tricky for measuring rainfall. It's fun to bring the rain gauge inside and take the reading after the ice has melted. 

Pil Primary School: There was hardly any rainfall this week, and it was very cold.
Professor Plant: Cold, dry weather is tough, but it’s good to see you’re keeping up with observations. Well done!

Ysgol Tycroes: It felt really cold this week.
Professor Plant: It can feel extra cold in winter, but your bulbs are well-equipped to handle the chill. Make sure you wrap up warm when going outside to take your readings.

Rain and Storms:

Scotstoun Primary School: The rain gauge has been full for some time now - it has been full due to torrential rainfall in December.
Professor Plant: Good observation. Remember to empty your rain gauge after taking each days reading!

Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School: Monday 6th January includes rainfall from over Christmas. Snowfall on the night of 3rd January melted.
Professor Plant: Melting snow often adds to your rainfall measurements. Great work noting the context, it’s very helpful!

Rhayader Primary: Over 50mm of rainfall after the weekend, with Storm Darragh. No temperature readings as school was shut due to no electric after the storm.
Professor Plant: That sounds like a wild week! Storm Darragh brought lots of rain, well done for recording what you could. Thank you for sharing the impact that the storm had on your school. 

Ysgol Pentreuchaf: Yr ysgol ar gau Dydd Llun, dim trydan yna yn dilyn Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Storm Darragh caused so much disruption. Diolch for keeping up with your records despite the challenges!

Ysgol Gymraeg Morswyn: 7-8/12/24 - Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Storm Darragh made quite an impact! Thank you for noting the storm in your comments.

St Mary’s Primary School - Newry: There was lots of rainfall collected on Monday because of Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Great job recording after the storm. That rainfall will help hydrate the bulbs in the soil.

Ysgol Porth Y Felin: There was a storm—that is why there is no record for some days.
Professor Plant: Storms make recording tricky, especially big storms that might cause school closures. You’ve done well to note the circumstances—thank you!

General Weather Observations:

Cornist Park C.P: Today it is cloudy and dark. It is damp and cold.
Professor Plant: Cloudy and damp conditions can be tough, but bulbs still grow under the soil. Well done for getting outside and monitoring!

Meldrum Primary School: Not as much rainfall this week as previous weeks, but there is still a general amount of rainfall.
Professor Plant: Great observation. A balance of rain is important for bulbs, they’ll appreciate the moisture in the soil.

Pil Primary School: There has been lots of rain on Thursday. I got wet reading the temperature and rainfall this week.
Professor Plant: Thank you for your dedication! Your readings are invaluable - great work braving the rain.

Mountain Lane School: Storm Darragh on Fri/Sat.
Professor Plant: Thank you for recording such significant weather events. 

Holiday or School Events:

Stanford in the Vale Primary School: It was hot during the first 3 days but then it got a bit colder. Also, Merry Christmas!
Professor Plant:  Hope you had a Merry Christmas too! Thank you for your weather observations. 

Wellshot Primary School: All of our school Christmas shows and parties took over the first few days, but we made sure to update the last 2 days.
Professor Plant: Great teamwork! Balancing festivities and science is impressive, well done!

Mountain Lane School: Nadolig Llawen.
Professor Plant: I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas too! 

Ysgol Porth Y Felin Christmas holidays/yay!
Professor Plant: Thank you for keeping your weather records up to date right up to the holidays!