School children plant 40,000 bluebells to mark start of Spring

Hundreds of primary schoolchildren launched a new project “Green Fingers in the Park” to help the ecology of the Royal Parks today, officially marking the first day of Spring.

Four hundred children, aged 4-11 received a special invitation to help plant 40,000 native English bluebells near the Serpentine in Hyde Park.

As the charity for London’s eight Royal Parks, we aim to engage youngsters with the magic of the natural world, while creating a wildflower attraction for visitors and also a new habitat for insects, birds and bees.

The Royal Parks’ expert horticultural officers and the charity’s education team are helping the children, pupils at London’s Thomas’s School in Kensington, to plant the bulbs, with additional plantings now planned as annual events.

Rob Dowling, Hyde Park’s Assistant Manager said:

It is great to see so many children getting involved and enjoying planting new flowers. It’s a rewarding way for these children to learn about the ecology of the park. The bluebells planted today will enhance the landscape for years to come.”

The bulbs, which have been generously sponsored by the children’s parents, are ‘in the green’ (with leaves emerging), making the job of planting simpler for the youngest pupils.

Amelia, age 10, says:

The bluebells will look like a beautiful sea of flowers. It is wonderful to be surrounded by nature even though we live in a huge city, and we think that everybody who uses the park will feel happy when they see our flowers”

When their work is done, the children are visiting the nearby Isis Education Centre to learn about life cycles in the natural world and the ecology of the Park.