Richard Higgins Blog

Comfrey is the bees knees when it comes to organic fertilizer or as Noah put it "Its like steroids for plants". I read about this wonderous plant last year and brought some to grow in our garden to see if we could reap some of the organic goodness on offer! Comfrey is a 'Dynamic Accumulator' which means it sends its roots deep down into the ground and brings up all the nutrients from down below and stores them in its leaves.  Comfrey also has many medicinal properties and can be used to treat ailments such as sprains, burns, bruises and joint inflammation. I even read somewhere that it was used in medieval times to help with broken bones. Today our Level 2 Students Noah and Thomas took the first steps in making comfrey tea which we will use to boost our plant growth. Comfrey is  especially rich in potassium. Here is the recipe we used for Comfrey Tea. About 80 Comfrey Leaves ( broken up & put in a bucket ) Fill the bucket with water Wait 2 or so weeks ( you will k...

  Year 11 Environmental Sustainability Management students are currently working on the standard 'Design a Landscape Plan that reflects user requirements' We have chosen to redesign the Horticulture block. This kaupapa requires students to think carefully about this environment and landscape. Students will focus on the natural patterns that already exist, for example water flow, shade, light and seasonal change. We will find ways in which we can work in harmony with nature and maximise the production of healthy kai, reduce our waste, create places for learning and reflection as well as places of beauty and peace.  Today we discussed Annuals, Perennials and  Deciduous Trees.

We have some exceptional students at Bay of Islands College and I am continually impressed by the positive attitude,  good nature and hard work that they put in to life at school. Last week I put the word out that I was looking for a bit of help with some mahi in the garden, specifically clearing out the area where the new shade house will be going. Due to the hectic schedule of a school week , Saturday was the only day which I had time to do this job. I asked around if any students were available to help out. Being the weekend I was not very optimistic, until I asked Verner who said he was keen! True to his word, Verna arrived at 9.30am on the dot and ready to work! We smashed out about 2.5 hours of hard graft to get the job done and the site ready for the wood work students to start on the shade house. This is a very big step forward for Environmental Sustainability Management at Bay College. Verner is a bright student with a very big future ahead of him !  Thanks for your h...

This week ESM champion and resident American Jasper tried mowing the lawns for the very first time. Growing up in the desert of Nevada and living on a boat in Russel he has never had the opportunity to participate in this most kiwi of traditions, mowing the lawns. He was working towards 5 NCEA credits in Garden Maintenance.  In this lesson Jasper also got introduced to the other great kiwi tradition commonly known as 'The Stitch Up' being a novice to lawn maintenance, his mates Andrew and Christian ( who tell me they have been mowing the lawn for years!!!) had Jasper start in the long grass, on a low setting, with the catcher on......classic! Ka pai e hoa! Keep up the Good work!

Level 2 ESM stepped outside today to have a look at or new project. This is for the Standard 'Produce a Landscape Plan' .We have a very exciting opportunity to design a landscape plan that will enhance the environment here at school. The Bank on the eastern side of the top field is currently not being utilized  and  covered in weeds. From a distance it looks like big trees, and some of them are quite impressive in size. But to my knowledge none of them were planted there rather they are seeds that have blown onto the bank, settled, germinated and grown into big trees. From my count there was 3 native trees. We are going to be re thinking and redesigning this area taking into consideration the social, cultural environmental and economic factors that will make this dream become a reality.  The first step is to 'Observe and Interact' , so we went out there and had a look at what was going on, this helped us to recognize the scale of the project and our imaginations ran wil...

The new shade house is seeing a lot of activity these days with our level one students learning the basics of plant propagation techniques. Over the last 2 weeks we have been growing seeds in seed trays, choosing the vegetables suitable for this time of the year. This was the first opportunity we have had to prick out seedlings and pot them into bigger containers, for a few students this was the first time that ever tried this technique!. Itwas great to see students getting their hands dirty and taking the first step of growing their own fresh healthy Kai. There is still a lot of work to be done to get this garden growing, so far we are really happy with the awesome start progress this class is making to be coming more environmentally sustainable! Kapai!

A big thank you to Mr Wilkie and the art department for designing a new sign for our garden! it is really important for our departments at school to be working together to build a sustainable future! Kia pai

Today in environmental sustainability management level 1 course students began growing seeds and pots and containers this is the first step in growing our garden. over the course of the next few weeks students will nurture and grow the seeds to the point where they are ready to go into the ground. The seeds we have grown are Vegetables, mainly brassicas which will be ready by the end of term one. It is also the hope that some of this mail that we can grow can be given away to the school whanau and community. Growing a garden is slow and rewarding process. We have taken the first step and I am very excited about what the future holds for our garden, our students and the planet! Kia kaha!

Check out the Environmental Sustainability Management Department’s new shade house! This shade house is a prototype for something much bigger which we will be building by the end of term one. Students in the Environmental Sustainability Management course will be learning how to grow native trees, vegetables and flowers, how to maintain a vegetable garden and important aspects of landscape design. It is very hot in the garden at the moment so the shade house is going to provide really good shelter for our young plants during the hot, dry summer months , Kia ora