During the week of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2015, the girls from Queen Margaret’s School, York planted six fruit trees as part of the BSA’s boarding orchard.
The colours of the trees were specially chosen to represent each of the Houses at Queen Margaret’s. The yellow of St. Aidan’s House was represented with a Prunus Oullins ‘Golden Gage’ plum tree. A Malus ‘Blue Moon’ apple tree was chosen to represent the blue of QM Hall. Garry House’s red was represented with a Malus ‘Red Sentinel’ apple tree. The green of School House was symbolised by a Prunus ‘Green Gage’ plum tree. Duncan House’s pink was represented by a Malus ‘Pink Glow’ apple tree and a Prunus ‘Purple Victoria’ plum tree was chosen for the purple of Pitlochry.
House Captains, House Monitors and Heads of House took on the demanding task of planting the trees ensuring they were all planted at the correct height with the right amount of drainage and support. The trees have been planted within the existing orchard behind the Year I boarding house and will now establish themselves and form a beautiful, inspirational space for girls to work and relax.
The six trees planted at Queen Margaret’s School will form part of a Boarding Orchard which is set to become the largest orchard by geography in the UK and also extend internationally through overseas boarding schools joining the scheme. The trees symbolise the ‘tree of knowledge’ and demonstrate Queen Margaret’s commitment to growth and caring for the environment.