The visit also helped the children to become more aware of their own responsibilities and to develop a more caring approach towards the environment. For example, the compost heap helped them to understand about recycling garden waste; none of the children had heard of a compost heap before but they were able to apply their new knowledge back at school. They were able to taste herbs and see vegetables growing first hand. Seeing bean plants with flowers linked in with the stories they had been reading, and they could compare the bean plants to their own back at school, which had only just begun to grow roots. As they explored the gardens, they talked to each other using the new vocabulary they had acquired: ‘nectar’, ‘bark’, ‘compost’.