The team and residents at Mill House Care Home in Chipping Campden enjoyed getting involved with the Aria in Bloom initiative and approached it with two visions in mind. Firstly every resident needed to be included and secondly we wanted the garden to serve a purpose for our residents encouraging them to be involved in the future.
As we head into the warmer months, it’s the perfect time to get into the garden. At Aria Care we believe in the power of teamwork, which is why we launched our Spring into Summer initiative this May, with a ‘One Team Approach’. We understand the importance of making a great first impression so we rallied our teams to work together and get ready for the summer.
As a team we came up with a plan on how we were going to spend the day and how the project was going to develop and it resulted in nine new areas for our residents to experience, each one is small but they all bring something different.
1. The Welcome Zone – This area is designed to make our front entrance look welcoming but also to welcome birds, residents chose this as the bird zone as there is lots of hedging for nesting birds, we added a water feature to give the birds plenty to drink and planted trees and bushes that would bring berries in Autumn.
2. The Fruit Zone – This area was requested by residents who are not a lover of the harder work that can be needed in a greenhouse so the “Grow and Pick your own area” was created with Raspberries, Blueberries and Cherries this area gives easy wheelchair access and will mean residents can have a nibble as they explore the garden.
3. The Cotswold Zone – This area is made from two large wheelchair accessible planters everything growing in there is from a cutting or seeds collected from relatives ‘gardens so everything in these boxes’ came from the Cotswolds.
4. The Memory Zone – Roses were the most requested plant when we chatted to residents so we have created a special memory garden from 20 rosebushes, (it my not look great just yet but when it flowers we hope it will be wonderful)
5. The Bugs and Butterfly Zone – This might take a while but we have sown wildflower seeds to attract the butterflies and added bug hotels so the bugs can stay at Mill House as long as they like.
6. The Garden Herb Zone – Well, we had to do something to keep chef happy!
7. The Keep Up The Good Work Zone – This is our new greenhouse so we can take cuttings from what we have planted and grow even more, yes, we will have the always required tomato plant in the greenhouse but it’s mainly to grow seedlings to replenish the garden.
8. The Relaxation Zone – We have created an outdoor lounge where anyone can sit and relax and has heating so we can even sit outside in the snow with a hot chocolate and of course a glass of sherry.
9. The Play Zone – A slightly shaded are ideal for garden games.
We had a wonderful time creating all these areas and working on the project as a team, with each zone having team members and residents assigned to it to look after it moving forward!
Aria in Bloom will become a yearly activity that everyone across the company will get involved with, helping our homes prepare for the warmer days ahead. Our residents will then be able to enjoy their outdoor spaces and give them and their visitors a beautiful space to unwind.
Mill House provides residential, nursing and dementia care on a permanent and short stay basis. If you are looking for a care home and want to find out more about our home call us on freephone 0808 223 5524.
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