Guided school visits at RHS Garden Rosemoor

• Choose a workshop for EYFS, Primary, Secondary school and SEN workshops from the selection below
• To arrange a guided school visit please view our availability and make a booking on our Guided School Visits Booking Page

• Please note: Free entry on your pre-visit only applies to teachers who will be accompanying children on the day of the school visit
• Use the self-guided resources to help you plan the self-guided part of your day
• Please help Rosemoor create less waste and pollution by carrying home and recycling your lunchbox rubbish

• Bees and Beasties: Find out about the animals that live at Rosemoor with a focus on bees. Children will learn why bees are important for plants, make a bee crown and have a go at waggle dancing! The children will look for invertebrates and plant some bee friendly seeds. Best time to choose this activity: Spring and Summer
• Legendary Leaves: Leaves are brilliant! Children will go on a Garden walk to collect different types of leaves and find out about deciduous/evergreen. They will use their leaves to make a leaf kebab, wax resist picture or leaf crown, and we will finish the session with a planting activity. Best time to choose this activity: Autumn and Winter.

• Rosemoor through the seasons: Rosemoor is a fantastic place to visit to observe seasonal changes. The children will discuss which season it is and how we know, take part in a plant hunt, collect different coloured treasures from the garden to create a crown or tree, and plant some seeds.Best time to choose this activity: Suitable for all seasons
• All about Plants: Children will learn that most plants grow from seeds, and how to make a seed germinate through role play. Learn the words root, stem, leaf and flower, and find examples growing in the garden. Plant a seed to take home and grow. Best time to choose this activity: Suitable for all seasons

How Plants Grow series
Each workshop includes roleplay, planting and time in the garden.
• KS1 Discovering Plants – germination, plant parts and function, and planting a seed
• LKS2 Exploring Plants – recap germination, lifecycle of a flowering plant, seed dispersal and practical repotting skills
• UKS2 Investigating Plants – plant pollination and fertilisation, introduction to botanical names and classification and taking a cutting

Who Lives in Our Garden? series
Each workshop includes animal tracks and signs, an invertebrate hunt and planting for pollinators.
• KS1 Discovering – herbivore, carnivore and omnivore, vertebrates and invertebrates
• LKS2 Exploring – ecosystems, sorting invertebrates by characteristics, food chains
• UKS2 Investigating – ecosystems, interdependence and ecosystems, practical classification

Fantastic Food series
Explore our edible plant collection, discover where our food comes from, visit our vegetable garden and plant edible seeds to grow and harvest
• KS1 Discovering – plant parts, their function, and which parts are edible. Find out what is growing now
• KS2 Exploring & Investigating – seasonal edibles, plant protection for growing in UK climates, and food miles

Gardens are Good for You: Suitable for KS1 and KS2
Find out about RHS scientific research that has proven that gardens really are good for you!
Explore the garden through a series of bite size activities focussed on touch, smell, sight and sounds, suited to the age of the children and time of year. Plant something edible to take home to grow and taste.

Rocks and Soils series 
Each workshop includes a hands-on exploration of soil and its properties, its importance for growing, and making a seedball.
• KS1 Discovering – soil components and whether these they are alive, dead or never lived
• LKS2 Exploring – rock types and how these affect soils in different locations, activities to find out about Rosemoor’s soil
• UKS2 Investigating – how soil impacts plant growth, scientific soil texture and pH testing, comparing properties of soils

Inspirational Nature options
Using the gardens as an inspiration for art, develop observation skills through warm up activities then choose from…
• KS1 and KS2 Natural art – collect items to create ephemeral art based on Andy Goldsworthy and Richard Shilling
• KS1 and KS2 Clay – create an airdry clay sculpture, based on something you have seen in the garden, to take home
• KS2 Watercolours – learn botanical watercolour painting skills

National Education Nature Park: Suitable for KS1 and KS2
Find out about the National Education Nature Park programme. Learn activities to replicate at school to find out about the biodiversity in your school grounds. Collect ideas from Rosemoor to improve biodiversity in your setting. Activities will be selected with you in advance from a menu of options to fit in with your Nature Park journey.
 

• Watercolours and Botanical Art
  Try your hand at watercolour painting, including creating a watercolour wash and mixing pigments to create the colours you need. Either create a landscape painting in the garden focussing on foreground, midground and background, or paint a botanical plate of a seasonal plant. Available all year round
• Field Studies
  A fully hands-on and practical session in Rosemoor's woodland. Students will learn about plant identification, and develop and use quadrat surveying skills to ascertain the diversity of flora growing at Rosemoor. Available Spring 2, Summer and Autumn 
• Soils and Plant Growth
  Carry out practical tests to identify the soil type of different Devon soils. Learn how different soil properties impact plant growth, considering soil texture and pH and how these can influence gardening. Look at seasonal plants for different soils and reflect on how being in the garden makes us feel. Available all year round

• Plants Under Attack
  Investigate signs of pathogens and plant health problems, create an identification key, then try it out in the garden. This session focusses on our rose collection and Fruit and Vegetable Garden, considering challenges that impact plant growth and finding out how these are managed sustainably. Available Summer 2 and Autumn 1
• Plant Reproduction and Clones
  Explore flower structure and function to find out about sexual reproduction of plants. Learn more about pollination, see pollinators in action, and consider selective breeding and cloning and their impacts on food security. Visit the Trials Area to look at cultivars through the eyes of an RHS Plant Judge, and finish with a practical cloning activity. Available Spring 2, Summer and Autumn 1

Autumn 1: From Seed to Fruit, and the Apple Orchards
Follow the lifecycle of a plant from seed to fruit. Spend time in Rosemoor’s apple orchards, looking at the different apple types and varieties of apple, and how they are grown.

Spring 1: Investigating Soils and Roots
Learn about soil as the fundamental ingredient of gardens and discuss the importance of green spaces. Students will continue their soil investigations in the garden and look at seasonal plants, then repot a plant to look more closely at its roots.

Summer 1: Keeping Plants Happy
Find out more about how plants grow. Learn or recap the structure of flowering plants, plants nutrient needs, and processes such as photosynthesis, pollination and fertilisation. Spend time in the garden to see and count pollinators in action.
 

Autumn 2: Autumn Interest 
Focus on the season and what goes on in the garden at this time of year. Find out more about bulbs then plant a bulb lasagne. Learn about leaf colour and shape, then collect and classify leaves on a woodland walk.

Spring 2: Vegetable Garden Planning and Growing
Spring is a good time to plan your garden. Students will design and plant their own mini vegetable garden to take back to school and grow. We will also see what vegetables are already growing at Rosemoor.


Summer 2: Fantastic Food
Explore Rosemoor’s Fruit & Vegetable Garden. See what is growing there at this time of year and map an area to look at specific growing situations. Investigate further to spot signs of plant health problems and consider how these might be overcome.