Daffodils in the Park

In October 2013, 600 school children from the Francis Holland School Sloane Square and other local London schools, planted 60,000 daffodils by the Serpentine, Hyde Park.

Daffodils are always a joy to see in the Royal Parks, giving Park visitors a wonderful vista of yellow. They also benefit London's wildlife as they act as a much needed source of early food for pollinating insects, such as bees.

However, daffodils in Hyde Park have been dying back over recent years, made worse by recent wet summers and cold winters, so as part of the Green Fingers in the Park programme we wanted to work with the Royal Parks to plant new ones to bring the splash of spring-time yellow back to the Serpentine in Hyde Park.

Thanks to the amazing fundraising of pupils from the Francis Holland School, Sloane Square and their parents, which included cake sales, a sponsored run and a ‘Daffodil Walk’ around the Serpentine, we were able to make this wish a reality.

Their fantastic support made it possible for 600 pupils from the Francis Holland School, Sloane Square, St Barnabas School, Millbank, Hampden Gurney, and Frank Barnes School for Deaf Children, to help the gardeners and our education team to  plant 60,000 new daffodil bulbs over the course of week in October 2013.

As well as planting the bulbs, pupils spent time leaf rubbing, exploring the natural resources of the Park and learning about the life cycle of plants by dissecting daffodil heads in the classrooms of the Isis Education Centre. They also planted their own daffodil bulb in a pot to take home and watch grow.

All the activities are designed to give the best possible outdoor learning experience and linked to the national curriculum, all whilst having lots of fun!

Two pairs of pupils from the Francis Holland School, Sloane Square wrote blogs about their experience of Green Fingers in the Park, Bulbs to Brighten up the Serpentine and Whatever the Weather.

Map showing the location of the daffodil planting in October 2013.