Environmental educator Sylke Brünn relies on a wide variety of species. A herb spiral is also part of the new Nature Garden project, which is aimed at educational staff in kindergartens. (PETRA STUBBE)
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“In the Corona crisis, many kindergartens are looking for opportunities to be outside,” says Sylke Brünn from the Regional Association of Garden Friends, “and during this time the appreciation of gardens and green spaces in the city has increased significantly.” There are kindergartens in Bremen Now a new project to bring a piece of nature onto your own premises: The regional association of gardening friends is designing a natural garden step by step with the educational specialists and the children of the facility and also provides advice.
“Many educators who work in kindergartens do not dare to create a natural garden because they lack the background knowledge,” says Sylke Brünn, “that is why we offer the three modular variants of bees, herb and vegetable gardens, each of which new knowledge is gradually imparted. So every kindergarten can choose what is right for him. “
Sylke Brünn will bring the plants with her, which are native and not exotic species: “The insect world, such as wild bees or butterflies, is adapted to plant species from the region, which thus promote biodiversity far more than plants from distant countries” says the environmental educator, who has already carried out numerous garden projects with children in the Floratrium. “Planting wild flowers, herbs and vegetables creates a lively diversity that attracts insects, birds and small mammals,” says Sylke Brünn, “This creates a new, open educational space in which children and educational staff can share ideas and curiosity about sustainability Being able to develop action. ”In the project, questions relevant to the future, such as the origin of our food, resource conservation and how we deal with nature, are taken up and our own answers are found together.
So that the specialists who work in the kindergartens acquire knowledge about natural gardens from their own experience, they should be involved in the design of the natural garden and also take part in three training courses that will take place in the Floratrium. The project does not incur any costs for the kindergartens.
Sylke Brünn emphasizes that the new project, which is being financed by the Senator for Children and Education in Bremen, is part of early childhood education and not a horticultural project: “We will not undertake a complete redesign of the site, but the one Focus on education for sustainable development, ”she says.
Sylke Brünn sees great potential for the development of natural gardens in Bremen: “In total, there are around 222 hectares of urban greenery in public buildings, such as kindergartens or schools – that’s around nine percent of the public green,” she says, “and some facilities have them even over large areas of more than 10,000 square meters. ”In such areas, it would therefore be particularly effective to increase biodiversity and at the same time convey sustainable knowledge of nature and the environment.
Further information
Interested educational specialists from kindergartens can contact Sylke Brünn in the Floratrium, Johann Friedrich-Walte-Straße 2, on the telephone number 33 65 51 21 up to and including Monday, February 1st. Participation can also take place by e-mail to [email protected]. The natural garden project is free for the participants.
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