Blooming Adventures: Moon Children Discover the Perennial Display Garden
An interactive nature story: HSWT student Maike Robbauer guided the nursery children from Kinder(t)räume Weihenstephan along her nature trail centred on the flower seed ‘Flori’.
A special morning full of wonder, play and nature experiences awaited the ‘Moon Children’ from the parents’ initiative Kinder(t)räume Weihenstephan e.V. at the Weihenstephan Perennial Display Garden. Together with nature educator Lisa Klein, nursery teacher Annette Hollaar and HSWT student Maike Robbauer, the eleven curious children explored the garden. The tour formed part of Robbauer’s bachelor’s thesis in the Landscape Architecture and Ecological Planning programme, entitled ‘Designing a nature discovery trail for pre-school children in the Weihenstephan Perennial Trial Garden’. The thesis was subject to supervision by Prof. Dr Swantje Duthweiler.
The focus was on the story of ‘Flori’, a tiny flower seed that develops into an aster over the course of the tour. Its real-life counterpart grows in the trial garden, allowing the children to make a direct connection between the story and the actual plants. Flori was accompanied by Maila the great tit, who cheerfully shows the children various parts of the garden throughout the story and guides the little explorers from chapter to chapter.
Experiencing the plant world on an educational trail
At several stops along the nature trail, the children immersed themselves in nature with all their senses: they searched, observed, discovered and solved little tasks – sometimes on their own, sometimes as a team. The varied treasure hunts and the child-friendly structure of the story ensured that the entire nature trail became a lively learning adventure. At the end of the trail, the story’s conclusion awaited them, rounding off the morning as a wonderful experience for everyone.
Many of the children were particularly impressed by the visit to the water’s edge. “I especially loved the water lilies and the story – can we come again?” asked six-year-old Leonie enthusiastically. Feedback from parents was also consistently positive: many reported that, after the trip, their children spoke enthusiastically about plants, colours and their discoveries.
Practical experience feeds into bachelor’s thesis
For student Maike, the day served as a valuable practical test of her concept. “It was lovely to see the curiosity with which the ‘Moon Children’ explored the diverse flora and fauna in the display garden. I’d be delighted if they took something away from this experience of nature that would benefit them in the future,” she says. The insights she gained are now being incorporated into the finalisation of her bachelor’s thesis. At the same time, she is delighted that her project is helping to further develop a children’s programme for the Weihenstephan Perennial Display Garden.
