Kelty Community Wildlife Garden
Community Wildlife Garden
Fife Council and all public bodies have a duty to further the conservation of biodiversity when carrying out their responsibilities. An exciting opportunity was identified in Kelty allotments, at a wet area unsuitable for plots. Tying in with the aspirations of Kelty Community Council’s Greening Group to improve the visual impact of the village and encourage environmental initiatives, a project was developed to create a community wildlife garden. This is being achieved by encouraging the wildlife and habitats that are already there, such as the wildflowers including orchids, as well as the pond. New habitat is also being created, such as small copses of fruiting and flowering native shrubs, as well as willow that will provide stepping stones for wildlife to pass through the site. The small pond was extended to create a mosaic of wetland habitat for wildlife, and a path was developed to enable members of the community and local school groups to enjoy the wildlife garden. Car parking was also improved for plot holders. Allotment holders were invited to the tree planting events along with children from Kelty and St Joseph’s primary schools and KCC Greening Group volunteers.
Most recently, the KCC Greening Group created a native hedgerow along the eastern boundary of the allotment site as a wildlife corridor for small mammals such as hedgehogs and bats as well as birds and pollinating insects. The hedge plants were donated by the Fife & Kinross Bat Group. The next steps will be sowing a native wildflower mix on the bare ground, creating bug hotels with school children and the guides, hibernacula for frogs and toads, and informal seating. Big thanks to all who have helped with this exciting project so far.
The Bug Hotel The Hibernaculum The Willow Dome
The Community orchard was planted by pupils from Kelty's primary schools
Pupils from the P5 Classes of both primary schools planted trees at the wildlife garden to create a community orchard. The trees were provided by Kelty Community Council and are all Scottish varieties.
James Grieve
Clydeside
Cambuskenneth Pippin
Arbroath Oslin
Lass O. Gowrie
Hoods Supreme
Pupils help to manage the wildlife meadow
P5 pupils from KPS and St joseph's worked with members of KCC Greening Group to manage the wildlife medow. They gathered the long grass that had been previously cut and sowed wildflower seeds. The children were very enthusiastic and the adults enjoyed their shared learning experience.
A Safe Space For Outdoor Learning
Update March 2019
The Children from Kelty Primary School and St Joseph's RC Primary School have continued to visit the site over the winter. March has been the start of the preparation for this years work. The mild weather has got some of the plants showing already.
On the 7th March, pupils from KPS helped to plant some saplings and built a second hibernaculum to provide a place for small animals to hibernate over the winter.
Second March Update
t was cold and windy but pupils from Kelty Primary School P5 turned out to continue the development of the wildlife garden. Divided into groups they planted trees and shrubs and built enclosures for turning grass cuttings and other waste material into compost. The group discussed how compost was made and what we could do with it once the waste material had rotted down.
May Update
Young environment champions from both Kelty Schools helped us to sow the wildflower maze at Blairadam Park on 2nd May.
The children moved on to the community wildlife garden to plant the two plum trees, donated to the project, in the community orchard.
June Update
Pupils from Kelty Primary School joined us at the community wildlife garden on the 20th May and took part in willow weaving and a bug hunt. They used big nets to sweep the grass for bugs and then used information charts to identify anything that was caught in the nets. All the insects were released once they had been identified.
The hot and humid and in some cases really wet weather has got everything growing down at the meadow. The wildflowers have spread a carpet of colour and grasses are waving in the breeze. The willow dome is looking unruly and in need of some care from our young community champions With the start of a new school year we will begin to manage some of the growth and start to prepare the site for the changing season.
Look What We found Today
Down at the wildlife meadow on the 29th August. Johanna found this in the long grass while we were cutting out docs
.
This is an elephant hawk moth caterpillar. For more information on this species follow the link below.
https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/elephant-hawk-moth
Some more pictures of the wildflower before we cut the meadow.
Kelty Primary School P5 Cohort 2019/20
Community Environment Champions
Action Plan September to December 2019
| Date | Task | Volunteers | Hours | Comments |
| 26/8 | Cut down docks and move to compost area | 4 | 3 | |
| 29/8 | Cut down docks and move to compost area | 4 | 3 | Task complete |
| 19/9 |
Collect wildflower seeds and sow over grassland Rake hay and move to the compost area Tie off the willow dome |
29 | 2 | |
| 26/9 |
Tree and shrub care – weeding within and around tubes, replacement of canes and tubes where necessary Could also place mulch around fruit trees |
18 | 2 | Include copses, small ‘hedge’ near pond and also hedgerow along eastern perimeter of allotment site |
| 3/10 | Plant 30m of soft fruit ‘edible’ hedge | 34 | 4 |
Currants, gooseberries, etc. May have to plant raspberries at a later date as these are supplied bare root later in season |
| 7/11 |
Pond dipping Check tree stakes and plant protectors Willow dome |
4 | 1 | Cancelled due to weather |
| 21/11 |
Paint container? Tree maintenance Plant 3 fruit bushes Fill in gaps in bug hotel Plastic pick up |
30 | 2 | |
| 5/12 |
Winter fruit tree pruning (may be very quick exercise!) Bird/bat box making? If can find supplier for wood Wild life spotting Could also make solitary bee ‘home’ (upright, sculptural piece of wood/trunk with holes of different sizes drilled into it. Can postcrete in place beside bug hotel) |
35 | 2 | |
September at the Wildlife Meadow
The area around the pond has been cut and our team of volunteers and young eco champions have been in action to collect the hay and move it to the compost area. The cuttings were given a good shake before they were removed to make them drop their seeds.
26th September the work was going well until the heavens opened and we all had to hide under a tarpaulin until the rain eased off.
3rd October Hedge Planting Day
We have been successful with a funding application to Volunteering Matters Action Earth and we have used the grant to purchase plants to build on our project. Our young volunteers, assisted by Greening Group members, parents and community volunteers will arrange the plants to create hedges of soft fruit bushes to form an edible highway across the site”. An event was organised on the 3rd October, to plant the hedges. Alex Rowley MSP joined the Group and engaged with the children in a discussion about biodiversity and what they were doing at the site. He presented volunteer certificates from Action Earth to both schools and a copy of Kelty’s Beautiful Fife Gold Award Certificate, in recognition of the part they played in that campaign.
Follow the links below for the Central Fife Times report on the event
/webs/428/documents/Central%20Fife%20Times%20No2%20%282%29%281%29.pdf
/webs/428/documents/Central%20Fife%20Times%20No3%20%282%29%281%29.pdf
22 November
A cold day at the wildlife garden.We are getting to the end of the preparation for winter.Students from both schools worked hard to make sure that the saplings were properly supported and protected from damage by small animals.The children also collected any plastic from around the site and two full bags were taken away for disposal.
Thursday 5th December
The final session of 2019 and the rain was never far away. The children formed two groups to work on two separate projects, swapping over so that they got a chance to do both activities.We constructed four bee houses from old tree offcuts and Johanna lead a group investigation of the bushes in one of the hedgerows.
MARCH 2020
A Big Thanks To The Woodland Trust
The Woodland Trust kindly donated two tree packs for our project. Unfortunately, due to the Covid 19 restrictions we took the decision to cancel the schools' planting event on the 18th and 19th March. Before the stay at home restriction came into force a small group of volunteers from the Greening Group and Johanna from Fife Council planted the saplings to create a hedge at the east end of the site and a copse of trees to form a highway for small animals to pass through the site.
We Are Back In Action
In July and August the wildlife garden team started site maintenance in preparation for the return of our eco champions from Kelty Primary School and St Joseph's Primary School. The meadow was awash with colour but a lot of the fruit bushes were hidden by the long grass.
To comply with Scottish Government COVID 19 Guidance only one school at a time can attend but with the excellent cooperation of Mr Murray and Mrs Anderson we have managed to produce a programme for 2020/21. To follow the feedback from the children, click on the school logo.
Click on a year below to follow what we have been doing at the Kelty community Wildlife Garden
Click on a year below to follow what we have been doing at the Kelty Community Wildlife Garden
