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!

Thank you to all the schools who are diligently taking their weather readings, even in the rain and snow! 

Weather records for this term finish on 20 December. Please upload all readings taken to date by then. Remember to enter 'no record' for dates that you weren't in school and to add your observations in the comment section. 

Have a fantastic break Bulb Buddies. I'll see you in 2025!

Your Comments:

Scarva Primary School: There was a lot of rainfall over the weekend with Storm Darragh.
Professor Plant: Hello Scarva Primary! Storm Darragh certainly brought plenty of rain. Your bulbs will love the extra water! Let’s hope for some sunshine soon to balance it out. Keep up the great observations.

Pil Primary School: It is still cold outside and we have had a lot of rain this week.
Professor Plant:  Thank you for the weather observations Pil Primary.

Gavinburn Primary School: There was a lot more rain this week.
Professor Plant: Hi Gavinburn Primary, thank you for the update. Keep up the great work.

Ysgol Tycroes: We had a lot of rain. Our plants have started to grow shoots.
Professor Plant: Hello Ysgol Tycroes. Shoots already, that’s wonderful news! Your bulbs are making great progress thanks to all the rain. Keep watching them closely.

Meldrum Primary School: Decent rainfall for this week, temperature seems good.
Professor Plant: Hi Meldrum Primary, it sounds like your bulbs are enjoying a balanced week of rainfall and warmth. Keep an eye out for shoots—they might appear soon!

St Mary’s Primary School: Storm Darragh came on Friday.
Professor Plant: Hello St Mary’s Primary, thank you for updating us. 

Bwlchgwyn Primary School: We have got two plant pots with shoots. We think that having a blanket of snow on them may have fooled them into thinking it was a bit warmer than it was.
Professor Plant: Hello Bwlchgwyn Primary! It’s exciting that you have two pots with shoots already. Keep monitoring their progress—they’re off to a great start!

Rhayader Primary: Our plants have started growing - about 5.
Professor Plant: Hi Rhayader Primary. Five plants already, that’s fantastic news! Your bulbs are thriving—keep taking care of them and tracking their growth. Well done!

Cornist Park C.P: Today it is cold and dark with rain clouds all day.
Professor Plant: Hello Cornist Park. A cold and rainy day might not feel cheerful, but your bulbs are loving the extra water. Keep checking—they’re sure to grow more soon!

Ysgol Porth Y Felin: The bulbs have got bigger.
Professor Plant: Hi Ysgol Porth Y Felin. How exciting to hear your bulbs are growing bigger! Keep up the great work!

Doonfoot Primary School: Lots of rain and a storm.
Professor Plant: Hello Doonfoot Primary. Thank you for your update, keep up the great work.  

Stanford in the Vale Primary: Quite a rainy week. Unfortunately, no snow. We wish you all a merry Christmas.
Professor Plant: Hi Stanford in the Vale Primary! Rain is great for your bulbs, even if snow would have been more fun for you! Thank you for the Christmas wishes—I wish you all a merry Christmas too!

Our Lady’s RC Primary: I did this alone :)
Professor Plant: Hello! Doing this alone is impressive—well done! Your observations are very valuable, so keep up the brilliant work. Great job!

Meldrum Primary School: Rainfall a bit low after Monday, temperature seems a bit all over the place right now.
Professor Plant: Hi Meldrum Primary. It's great that you are noticing differences in your daily and weekly weather readings. I look forward to your next observations. 

Pil Primary School: There was so much rain when we checked on Monday and the weather is chilly. Our spring bulbs have started to shoot up.
Professor Plant: Hello Pil Primary! Shoots appearing already? That’s wonderful! The rainy weather is helping your bulbs to grow. Keep watching closely—great job!

Pil Primary School: It was very cold this week.
Professor Plant: Hi Pil Primary. The cold might slow us down, but your bulbs are tough. Keep up the excellent work!

Pil Primary School: There was hardly any rain to measure this week.
Professor Plant: Hello again, Pil Primary! Even with less rain, your bulbs should still have enough moisture from earlier weeks. Keep tracking the weather and checking for growth—you’re doing brilliantly!

Hi Bulb Buddies,

I would like to say a huge thank you to all the schools who have uploaded their weather data to the website. For anyone new to the Blog, we have 175 schools across the country taking weather readings for every day they are in school from November to March! Our Super Scientists are exploring the effects of weather on the flowering dates of spring bulbs! 

The MET Office has described November 2024 as a month of two halves, because the weather for the first two weeks was mild and relatively warm but the following two weeks were wet, windy and even snowy! This is reflected in your comments; at the beginning of the month many of you commented on not having much rain. In the second half there were reports of lots of rain and some snow! This was the snowiest November since 2010!

Only one school has mentioned Storm Bert, but this was the cause of lots of the rainfall that you reported. You may have seen lots of discussions around flooding and weather warnings in the news. You can learn more about weather warnings here: Weather Warnings And more about named storms here: Weathering the Storm

Storm season runs from September to August, which aligns nicely with our investigation. Storm Bert was the second named storm this storm season. We've also had storm Ashley and storm Conall. You can see the names for this seasons storms in the image on the right. Last storm season was the stormiest since naming UK storms began in 2015. Last year we had 12 named storms and by this time last year there had already been four named storms and the fifth was on it's way! 

Lets take a look at your comments to see how the project is going in schools across the UK. I'm excited to report that many schools have noticed some green shoots in their pots!

Messages to Professor Plant

Eveswell Primary
Comment:
Hello professor, sorry that we could not send u this data until now. I am in year six now so I'm going to move on to high school so I probably won't see you ever again so bye for now. I hope you see this message if not that is okay. Please can you reply to me so I know that our data has helped you.

Professor Plant's Response:
Thank you, Josh! Your data has been extremely helpful, and I want to say a big thank you for all of the work you have done on this project. Please thank everyone at your school that has worked on this as well. I’m sure you will have a fantastic time at your next school!

Ysgol Pennant
Comment:
Ar y dydd Mawrth aeth yr ysgol i wylio sioe yn theatr Hafren felly doedden methu gofnodi.

Professor Plant's Response:
Diolch yn fawr Ysgol Pennant. It’s okay to miss a day—your effort in recording other days is very much appreciated. Thank you for letting me know. 

Weather Observations

Stanford in the Vale Primary School
Comment:
Sorry for the confusion on the 18-22 of November; this is the actual date for last week's temperature.

Professor Plant's Response:
Thank you for clarifying, Stanford Bulb Scientists. Accurate records are important, and your efforts help us greatly. Keep up the great work!

St Joseph's Cathedral Primary (Swansea)
Comment:
On the 28th, the temperature was not read correctly, so the real temperature was 4 to 8 degrees Celsius. The chart would not let me put two numbers, so I have to make a note. I am not sure about this, but on the 26th, a Tuesday, the rainfall was 49 mm, which I am not sure is correct. Sorry if this reading is wrong.

Professor Plant's Response:
Thank you for adding these detailed notes with your readings Mammals! It’s okay if readings are sometimes uncertain—it’s all part of learning science. You’ve shown good scientific skills by questioning your readings and noting your thoughts on these. 

Henllys Church in Wales School
Comment:
All good big change in rainfall.

Professor Plant's Response:
Great observation! Sudden changes in rainfall can tell us a lot about the weather patterns. Keep an eye on those gauges!

Ysgol Llanddulas
Comment:
We saw more rain this week.

Professor Plant's Response:
Thank you, Roaring Reptiles! It sounds like you’ve had some wet weather—perfect for bulbs to grow!

Bryn Deri Primary
Comment:
There has been a lot more rain recently, especially on the weekend of the 23rd and 24th of November—which is not shown on our data (the weekend). We have also had some frosty mornings. Our bulbs have begun to shoot. 

Professor Plant's Response:
Wonderful observations, Bryn Deri! Rain and frost make for an interesting combination. Keep watching those bulbs—they’re on their way!

Cornist Park C.P
Comment:
Monday: It is cloudy today. 
Tuesday: The weather is damp and cloudy.
Wednesday: There is lots of frost today.
Thursday: It is very cold and lots of white frost.
Friday: It is cold and sunny.

Professor Plant's Response:
Thank you, Cornist Park team, for such detailed daily updates! It’s great to see how all of you are working together to capture the weather conditions.

Bwlchgwyn Primary School
Comment:
This week we were off school for 3.5 days because of heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures. Even today, we cannot accurately look at the rain gauge because it is just so full of snow. We have managed to record the temperatures, but our gauge for the 4 days was just overflowing with snow.

Professor Plant's Response:
Thank you, Fish Group! Snowfall can make data collection tricky, but you’ve done a brilliant job despite the challenges. If this happens again you could bring the rain gauge into the classroom and wait for the ice or snow to melt before taking your rain readings. You could compare the reading before and after it melts too! 

Langbank Primary School
Comment:
Snowed on Friday.

Professor Plant's Response:
How exciting! Snow makes everything look magical—thank you for sharing this detail.

Doonfoot Primary School
Comment:
VERY WET on Monday; okay weather for the rest of the week.

Professor Plant's Response:
It sounds like Monday was a challenging start to the week, but you’ve captured the variation in weather in your comments. Thank you!

Plant Growth Observations

Alloway Primary School
Comment:
Some bulbs have started to grow.

Professor Plant's Response:
That’s fantastic news! Well done, Alloway Primary. Keep monitoring their progress as they continue to grow.

St Mary’s Primary School - Newry
Comment:
There was lots of rainfall over the weekend. Extreme frost and fog and a bit of snow.

Professor Plant's Response:
It sounds like you’ve had some wintry weather! Great job keeping track. Frost and snow can be challenging for bulbs, but they’re tough little plants.

Ysgol Tycroes
Comment:
We had snow this week, but not enough to stick. Our mystery plants have started to grow; we can see stalks with small spikey leaves on them both.

Professor Plant's Response:
How exciting that you’ve seen some snow and that your plants have started to grow! Keep watch over your plants to see what happens next. 

St Michael’s RC Primary
Comment:
We are enjoying taking care of the plants. We haven’t had much rain.

Professor Plant's Response:
Fantastic work, St Michael’s. I’m glad to hear that you are enjoying the project and that your plants are in good hands!

Hi Bulb Buddies,

I want to say a big thank you to all of the participating schools who worked hard planting bulbs for the project. Together we planted over 18 thousand bulbs across the UK and from the photos I’ve seen, it looks as though everyone had great fun doing it! 

All schools taking part in the project will be collecting weather data from 4 November until 28 March. They will be uploading these records regularly to the Amgueddfa Cymru website, along with comments and weather observations. We'll be learning a lot together over the school year. 

Resources are available on the website that explore different aspects of the project, including ideas for additional experiments and guides to making short videos for the Bulbcast competition!  

I'll be sure to share more photos and comments from schools to the Blog in the coming weeks. 

Keep up the good work Bulb Buddies,

Professor Plant