Last Friday was a ground-breaking day for the Enviro Group. It was our first dig at the grassy hill that leads from behind the hall, down to lake Pupuke. The steep incline that has proved treacherous to mow, is slowly being returned to nature as we create our native Mārā Koru, or Koru Garden. The ground was a lot harder than we expected, sodden with recent rains. Our lightweight bodies had little impact on our spades as we chipped away at it like dogs trying to get at a buried bone. Digging was frequently interrupted to rescue earthworms of varying lengths from being dissected.

Team 'Clark' cut the longest path from the Garden to Table end, while Team 'von Collas' cut a shorter but wider path at the Waterwise end of the section. We were very grateful for the extra muscle from the parents who came to help us: many thanks to Nic Sao, Michelle Dickson and Frank Wang.

This project will be ongoing. The more helpers we get, the faster we will progress. If you have time to help us between 1pm and 3pm on alternate Fridays, we would be grateful for your support. Our next digs for Term 3 will be: Fridays 21st August, 4th September and 18th September. Please get in touch with Michelle Clark or Ellen von Collas if you are able to help out.