Sunflowers in Kindy - Winners Named   12 Dec 2014

MEDIA RELEASE

Friday 12th December 2014

WINNING KINDY’S NAMED

Next generation of little gardeners literally grow through the roof!

Enthusiasm for gardening has literally grown through the roof over the last few months ensuring that Kiwis love of gardening is in good health and sure to be passed onto future generations.

18 months ago, Kiwi manufacturer and supplier of potting mixes and landscape products, Daltons came up with an initiative to encourage kindy kids to learn more about gardening by growing their own sunflowers. The Daltons Sunflowers in Kindergartens Project has just closed off for the second year and 245 kindergartens have been involved from nine regions throughout New Zealand.

Yesterday Daltons announced the regional winners who grew the Tallest Sunflower, and the Sunflower with the widest head. Taupaki kindergarten in Auckland literally grew their sunflower through their deck roof at a stunning 2.88 metres tall. Roof panels had to be removed to give the plant more room to grow! It is the tallest sunflower grown in the project to date.

The kindergartens also named their Daltons Best Little Gardener who received a special certificate and prize. Onslow Kindergarten in Khandallah, Wellington won the sought after gardening workshop with TV personality and award winning landscape designer Xanthe White. Insoll Kindergarten in Hamilton took out the Overall Best Photo with their picture of their little gardeners holding their sunflowers before planting them out. All of the regional winners are listed below.

Colin Parker, Daltons, General Manager was quick to send his congratulations; “I’d like to congratulate all the winning kindergartens as well as thank every child and the nine regional Kindergarten Associations members for taking part. I hope they enjoyed the project as much as we did bringing it to them.

“We are thrilled to have reached out to even more pre-school children this year. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive from both children, teachers and parents. Judging by the wonderful photos we have received the children really embraced the project, through caring and nurturing their plants each day.

“We were absolutely delighted to see that Taupaki Kindergarten in Auckland literally did grow their sunflower through the roof! What an incredibly positive statement about the next generation of gardeners and the future health of gardening in New Zealand.”

Susan Kloet, Head Teacher at Taupaki Kindergarten, said; “It was a real team effort- children, parents and teaching staff alike played a part. They all took turns watering, taking care and making sure all the plants were well looked after.”

The kindergartens received a free sunflower starter pack containing Daltons Potting Mix, biodegradable pots, Kings Seed skyscraper sunflower seeds, an extra long measuring tape, growing guide and growth chart.

Teachers also received support material to bring the learning to life with fun facts and activities. The project kicked off on 18 August with kindys having until 5pm on 09 December to submit pictures and measurements of their prodigy.

To reflect the variety of growing conditions throughout New Zealand, winners were named from each of the nine regions for both the tallest sunflower and the sunflower with the widest head. Each kindergarten was also asked to nominate their own'Daltons Best Little Gardener' to receive a certificate and prize pack.

All regional winners receive prize packs from Daltons and Warehouse Stationery. Every child will also receive their own certificate as a special keepsake. Participating kindergartens were put into the draw to win a gardening workshop with TV personality and award winning landscape designer Xanthe White.

Parker cites the ethos of the project as aiming to empower the next generation of gardeners and provide learning opportunities through practical gardening experiences.

The official regional winners of the Daltons Sunflowers in Kindy’s project are:

Daltons Tallest Sunflower plant winners:

• Auckland Regional Winner: Taupaki Kindergarten: 288cm tall (also won in 2013), Auckland Kindergarten Association

• Waikato Regional Winner: Aberdeen Kindergarten, Dinsdale, Hamilton: 256cm tall (also won Widest Sunflower Head in their region), Waikato Kindergarten Association

• Tauranga Regional Winner: Brookfield Kindergarten, Brookfield, Tauranga: 178cm tall, Tauranga Region Kindergartens Association

• Taranaki Regional Winner: Devon Kindergarten, Moturoa, New Plymouth: 269cm tall, Kindergarten Taranaki (Association)

• Wellington Regional Winner: York Street Kindergarten, Masterton: 174cm (also won Widest Sunflower Head in their region)Wellington Kindergarten Association.

• Nelson Tasman Regional winner: Grove Street Kindergarten, Nelson: 242cm tall (also won in 2013), Nelson Tasman Kindergarten Association

• Marlborough Regional winner: Witherlea Kindergarten, Blenheim: 208cm tall, Marlborough Kindergarten Association

• Christchurch Regional Winner: Kidsfirst Kindergartens Macfarlane Park, Shirley: 196cm tall, Kidsfirst Kindergartens Christchurch

• Dunedin Regional Winner: Mornington Kindergarten, Mornington: 116cm tall (also won in 2013), Dunedin Kindergarten Association

Daltons Widest Sunflower Head winners:

• Auckland Regional Winner: Kauri Park Kindergarten, Birkenhead: 18cm wide

• Waikato Regional Winner: Aberdeen Kindergarten, Dinsdale, Hamilton: 10 cm wide (also won Tallest Sunflower in their region), Waikato Kindergarten Association

• Wellington Regional Winner: York Street Kindergarten, Masterton: 7cm wide (also won Tallest Sunflower in their region)Wellington Kindergarten Association.

Winner of workshop with Xanthe White

• Onslow Kindergarten, Khandallah, Wellington

Overall best photo

• Insoll Kindergarten, Hamilton

ENDS

Background on the project

The Daltons Sunflowers in Kindergartens project was created to inspire a love of gardening through learning. It provides many wonderful learning opportunities for kindy kids to gain gardening skills for life, understand a plant’s life cycle in action and how to nurture a tiny seed into a blooming flower. Children were exposed to concepts of size and basic maths through regularly measuring and recording their plants growth along the way.

After a successful pilot programme in 2013, this year the project expanded so more kindy kids could have the opportunity to grow their own sunflowers. Four more regional kindergarten associations in Wellington, New Plymouth, Tauranga and Waikato joined the project taking the numbers to 245 kindergartens in nine regions* participating throughout New Zealand. The Daltons Sunflowers in Kindy’s Project ran from the 18th August to 9th December 2014.

*The Daltons Sunflowers in Kindy project only ran through Kindergarten associations in selected regions of New Zealand for 2014. For more information go to www.daltons.co.nz or visit them on Facebook.

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