Thank you to the Wild Flower Society for two generous grants that enabled us to run creative wildflower art journaling workshops and a children’s wildflower exploration session at Martineau Gardens.

A special thank you to Holly, whose fantastic creativity and botanical knowledge brought the sessions to life and made them so interesting and engaging for everyone. And thank you, too, for capturing the sessions so beautifully with such a wonderful collection of photographs.

The first grant supported a series of creative wildflower art journaling workshops, bringing together volunteers to explore the gardens, learn about local wildflowers and plants, and get creative.

Participants developed their confidence in plant identification and botanical observation, while experimenting with drawing, painting, botanical inks and printing techniques. They also explored the folklore, recipes, medicinal uses and ecological importance of different plants.

At the heart of the workshops was the creation of personal wildflower journals – ongoing records of observations, artwork and learning, encouraging participants to keep exploring long after the workshops ended.

The second grant enabled us to run a child-led wildflower exploration workshop as part of our summer playscheme, Wild Play at Martineau Gardens.

Children explored the gardens, discovering local wildflowers and plants and learning to notice their colours, shapes, textures and structures. They then created their own wildflower journals using natural and craft materials, experimenting with painting and botanical printing, including making prints from leaves.

It was wonderful to see how absorbed the children became: all of the children who came to the morning session returned for the afternoon and stayed for the rest of the day!

Across both projects, the combination of outdoor exploration, creativity and informal learning gave participants the opportunity to slow down, look closely, ask questions and connect with the natural world.

Thank you to the Wild Flower Society for helping us make these experiences possible, and for supporting creative, hands-on ways for people of all ages to discover and appreciate the wildflowers and plants around them.