pollen | Kelly St. Scientists

As spring has well and truly sprung, our visits to the allotment have resumed.

This presents an abundance of science opportunities for the children to experience.

20160509_102759[1] — Skippy helps us learn about plants and animals in the allotment.

Guiding us in our gardening is our friend Skippy (yes he is Australian). He looks after our allotment and helps us tend to the various plants and animals we find there.

"Skippy pointing to flowers and busy bees". — “Skippy pointing to flowers and busy bees”. By Owen

We were blessed with glorious sunshine on our visit on Monday, however our session started inside thinking about what seeds need to grow and how they change.

“They need soil” – Nathan

“They need the sun” – Patrick

“Water!” – Harmony

Skippy showed us the beans and peas that were planted by the last group.

the bean had started to grow a little! We could see the bean shell still on the top!

We could see a real difference between a bean without soil, water, heat and light and one that had.

They had grown into little plants.

Skippy told us about how the plants were buried in the soil to grow.

We had a think about what the plants needed to grow and how this could happen inside the hut (which has no windows).

“You could use the lights!” – Patrick

Skippy showed us the propagator and let Nathan and Lara feel the heat mat that keeps the seedlings warm and gives them light because the sun can’t do either inside.

The seedlings were kept warm on the heat mat and given light from the lamps.

Nathan applied his previous learning to what Skippy had shown and told us…

“Maybe the beanstalk will grow and have a castle at the top!” – Nathan

Skippy assured us that he hadn’t used magic beans so a castle was very unlikely. Then we went outside to see what was in the allotment, and what was growing.

Skippy showed us the leeks, chives, garlic and spring onions, and shallots that are all part of the onion family!

Skippy showed us where he had just cut up old flowers and scattered the cuttings. Seedlings were starting to grow.

Skippy showed us some of the vegetables he had started to grow in the greenhouse.

Skippy has started to grow tomatoes in the greenhouse too.

We saw an interesting green box at the end of a path…

We looked at the box and guessed what it might hold.

It was the allotment’s beehive!

Skippy told us how bees are essential for plants to grow.

“Without bees, nothing could live!” – Patrick

The bees get the stuff that they use to make honey, out of flowers.

We looked at some flowers to find the middle bit that the bees visit to collect nectar and get stuck with pollen. When the pollen from different flowers gets mixed up it allows new seeds to be formed – this is called pollination.

"The bees collect pollen from the flowers. — “The bees collect pollen from the flowers.

We looked for the middle bit of the flower to see where the pollen is for the bees to spread.

Skippy explained about why bees are important.

We pretended to be busy bees visiting the flowers getting covered in and spreading the pollen.

We tickled flowers pretending to be bees collecting nectar and spreading pollen

Busy bee Harmony gathering nectar to make honey and spreading pollen to make new plants!

Some of the middle yellow bits were extra special…

We tried to think what would be different about these flowers.

Skippy asked us to look closely at the middle bit of the flower.

The yellow middle will grow into strawberries!

The strawberries aren’t the only fruits growing in the allotment.

We looked closely at the plant to see tiny buds that will grow into raspberries.

We had a lot of thinking about seeds and how they grow, finding pollen and seedlings that have started to grow. However we hadn’t thought about how weeds and wild plants spread. The gardeners didn’t plant the chives in the path or the dandelions. We had a think about what moved them.

“The wind did it!” – Harmony

Skippy showed us where the seeds were formed in some plants and we helped spread some.

Skippy showed us where seeds can be found.

Skippy opened up some flowers to reveal the seeds.

Skippy demonstrated how wind helps to garden by spreading seeds.

Ellie acts like the wind to spread dandelion seeds.

Nathan helps spread dandelion seeds while practicing his counting with a dandelion clock.

Blowing dandelion clocks are a fun way to help your child count, think about more or less and learn about time language! The Mary Queen of Scots dandelion head popping rhyme is a good fine motor exercise, helping your child strengthen their finger muscles in preparation to write! The latter is more popular with gardeners 😉

All to soon it was time to return to the nursery, smarter little biologists.

Our visits to the allotment will continue throughout the growing season. We endeavour to get as many children to experience this as possible so your child should get a turn at some point.

Science blog from the children and staff of Kelly St. Children's Centre.