BBC News: Gardening not for 'the thick or dull' (report on gardening as a career)

[Seahorse]

BBC News - Gardening not for 'thick or dull', says Titchmarsh

I think belonging to the Vine with all it's young folk, professionals and school gardeners must have given me a false sense of optimism. I'm, genuinely saddened by some of the facts and figures in this report

[alldigging]

The person on R4 did point out what had been discussed on here - that the UK needs a Nigella of the garden.

[rustylady]

I agree Claire. I'm afraid a lot of youngsters still don't know much about where their food comes from and have no contact with gardens or plants, despite the efforts of school garden clubs.

Unfortunately this quote from the report Some 200 businesses were surveyed for the report. More than two thirds (67%) said that those entering the profession were inadequately prepared for work could apply to almost any business I think.

[Glutton4...]

I think the underlying problem is the Education system, personally. It's the same with institutions everywhere, Police Forces, Medical profession... Everything is target based, tick this box, tick that box, fill in this form. If there's no box to tick, it doesn't get done.

We're breeding a generation who are afraid to use their instinct - they are so brainwashed into filling in forms, ticking boxes, and meeting targets set by unrealistic people.

Robots.

[SarzWix]

I read that yesterday. I think that the dividing lines between biology/botany/environment/horticulture need to be scrubbed out. It's fine to be intelligent and be a scientist, but not to use that in a practical application. Similarly with design/art and landscaping. It's all part of society's obsession with putting things into clearly defined boxes and setting a value on those things. Similar to the differences between 'health care workers', 'nurses' and 'consultants'. The difference in 'value' given to those three bears no relation to their actual value to people's lives and the amount of actual work they each do..

[VirginVegGrower]

I agree Claire. I'm afraid a lot of youngsters still don't know much about where their food comes from and have no contact with gardens or plants, despite the efforts of school garden clubs.

Unfortunately this quote from the report Some 200 businesses were surveyed for the report. More than two thirds (67%) said that those entering the profession were inadequately prepared for work could apply to almost any business I think.

If you saw the one paragraph on sustainability of food production, herbicides, pesticides, biodiversity and deforestation for the biology exam my son is sitting today, you would weep.
Thanks to me for talking and him for listening, he actually knows the wider issues around those topics for today's exam. I hope it gains him extra marks, should he use it.

[VirginVegGrower]

I think the underlying problem is the Education system, personally. It's the same with institutions everywhere, Police Forces, Medical profession... Everything is target based, tick this box, tick that box, fill in this form. If there's no box to tick, it doesn't get done.

We're breeding a generation who are afraid to use their instinct - they are so brainwashed into filling in forms, ticking boxes, and meeting targets set by unrealistic people.

Robots.

This is bang on - 1984 autobot doing and thought police eradicating creativity is alive and well in our schools. This is why private sector businesses don't want UK grads - they can't think. I've worked with so many and few are self motivated, free thinking at the beginning. It's a shame because with encouragement they can and do flourish. It needs business to take a chance and get involved at school level as do Rolls-Royce and JCB in this area.

[BarleySugar]

Tick boxes and measurable worth is what it is all about. Today I had a meeting with a lady from The Sure Start Children'd Centre. She wants to set up an allotment for some of her vulnerable families where all members get involved, but she has hit a brick wall because the benefits will not be measurable in the short term. After persuading our allotment officer at the council that letting her use one bed on the community allotment (which is not being used by the community) would not be sub-letting I have suggested she sets up a pilot with a couple of families and her volunteer. We cannot fund them, and neither can she, but as I explained, they will benefit from recycling and being resourceful. In the mean time she can get on the waiting list, and by the time she gets one (approx 2 years), she will either have proved it will work, or it won't.
On another point, I met 2 gardening apprentices on a training course on disability awareness last week. I am sure they were very nice lads, but they didn't do themselves any favours when we went out to do the 'practical'. One didn't even wait to roll a fag, he did it as we were waiting for the lift. The other confessed when asked to manoeuvre the wheel chair up the curb that he hadn't been paying attention so didn't know what to do. The trainer was very scathing, which made me cringe, but he did have a point that the lad needed the certificate from the course. I don't necessarily think these lads were stupid, but their attitude was.

[Two_Sheds]

Tick boxes and measurable worth is what it is all about.

We were talking about SATs today: our year 6 children are currently sitting their exams, having spent the previous 6 months being trained to take the exam. Not learning, so much, just being trained to sit their SATs

[WendyC]

Mr Gove's truly awful proposed Primary Curriculum for September 2014, which looks like it was written in the 1950s, has one small glimmer. Horticulture is there. Under design technology:
horticulture: to cultivate plants for practical purposes, such as for food or for decorative displays.
Food an cooking is there too.

[horticultural_hobbit]

I'm not going to wade into the frank discussion; I will however offer an insight as green fingered educator.

I do smile, at the random plant related conversation that happens in my classroom. I have 7 small windows in my Psychology classroom. Occupied for some time with cacti. All named by students as we were studying random allocation in research methods. As the growing season has started, the cacti have shuffled all o'er the place. As ugly as they are, they brighten the room up and are a talking point. They are used on open evenings! My windows, are now occupied by gravel trays of seedlings et cetra.

Today, I had a conversation about bumble bees, Budthingy-the one butterflies like-I have been asked where pumpkins grow. Had students talk to my now dead broad beans. They wondered, what had happened to my cucumbers and squashes when I brought them home. "That's sweetcorn?" asked one as I told them that it was sweating(its transpiring, I know). As a Psychologist, and in the Science Faculty, I'm glad I can do what I like with my roo; even if it did start to look like a greenhouse.

I, with two colleagues, am facilitating a student led community garden. The group is small, but they are amazing. With the very broad and diverse spectrum of subject that we deliver, they wouldn't get anything similar to the hour session of the project. Hopefully, next year, we can kick start it with more established gusto as the upper sixth will soon be leaving us.

Nearly every school/college that I have been in, I have tried to dabble or do something to do with horticulture. My current position, I feel was karmic. I was mean to take my hobby there, help kick start something.

[zazen999]

Titchmarsh - thick, dull and unadventurous....yes I wonder where they got that idea from?

[Potstubsdustbins]

To me its not just horticulture, its any trade/proffession where one has to get one's hands dirty.

The politicians have drilled into the young that unless you go to a varsity you are pretty much bottom of the heap. Maybe because they are all proffessional politicians who all went to varsity and pretty much not one of them has had a real job.

The reality is I know plumbers who earn more than MPs, they just can't fiddle their expense's like an MP.

Potty

[veggiechicken]

Potty, I see your local college is offering a degree in "Heavy Metal" - and its not engineering BBC News - Heavy metal degree is a 'waste of time' claim campaigners
To my mind, plumbing is a lot more useful

[VirginVegGrower]

I'm not going to wade into the frank discussion; I will however offer an insight as green fingered educator.

I do smile, at the random plant related conversation that happens in my classroom. I have 7 small windows in my Psychology classroom. Occupied for some time with cacti. All named by students as we were studying random allocation in research methods. As the growing season has started, the cacti have shuffled all o'er the place. As ugly as they are, they brighten the room up and are a talking point. They are used on open evenings! My windows, are now occupied by gravel trays of seedlings et cetra.

Today, I had a conversation about bumble bees, Budthingy-the one butterflies like-I have been asked where pumpkins grow. Had students talk to my now dead broad beans. They wondered, what had happened to my cucumbers and squashes when I brought them home. "That's sweetcorn?" asked one as I told them that it was sweating(its transpiring, I know). As a Psychologist, and in the Science Faculty, I'm glad I can do what I like with my roo; even if it did start to look like a greenhouse.

I, with two colleagues, am facilitating a student led community garden. The group is small, but they are amazing. With the very broad and diverse spectrum of subject that we deliver, they wouldn't get anything similar to the hour session of the project. Hopefully, next year, we can kick start it with more established gusto as the upper sixth will soon be leaving us.

Nearly every school/college that I have been in, I have tried to dabble or do something to do with horticulture. My current position, I feel was karmic. I was mean to take my hobby there, help kick start something.

Buddleia?

I've just learned all about transpiration amongst other things during my revision cramming.