Learning takes root on School Tree Day

ST PATRICKS Primary School pupils helped boost the tree population at the Food is Free Green Space in Ripon Street recently.

As part of School Tree Day, twenty students from Grades 1 to 6, filled raised garden beds with compost, dug in bare rooted fruit trees and watered them well, all the while learning how important trees are for food, shade and shelter.

Lou Ridsdale, Founder and Director of Food is Free, said this is the first time Green Space has been involved in the tree planting.

“Thanks to the State government’s Pick My Project funding we received, it enabled us to put in the new raised beds specifically for trees,” she said.

“It is so important for children these days to realise that fruit will eventually grow from the trees they planted today.

“They are the lungs of the earth, and it’s crucial for the children to know how important trees are for the planet and that the trees will be there for many generations to come.”

St Patricks has a strong sustainability program as part of their curriculum and having the students work along side their teachers and Green Space volunteers is a hands-on experience for them, Ms Ridsdale said.

“We don’t connect with the earth like previous generations did so it’s marvellous these pupils now understand where food comes from,” she said.

School Tree Day is an initiative of Planet Ark which inspires students to learn about the local environment while playing an active role in their community.