In 2004 a group of senior pupils from Forres Academy under the guidance of Depute Rector Caroline Hastie set about renovating the former Plasmon Mill Pond area, situated just behind Forres Academy.

The pond area was overgrown and barely visible, yet the class were still inspired about the project’s possibilities and began to make plans for the site and contacted local community groups, who became generous partners in the project.

It was a hard but fun year and the students and partners all learned a great deal. No one could have believed the vast scale of the final project and the groups efforts were awarded when they won a ‘Community Garden’ spot on the Beechgrove Garden - Scotland's premiere Gardening Programme. The project also featured heavily in Forres in Bloom's 2004 entry to the Beautiful Scotland in Bloom competition.

The site was literally a wasteland, an area of knee-high mud used as a tip and surrounded by 2 metre tall, extremely dense rhododendrons. After the pond was dredged and the paths became faintly visible, the group all stunned by the difference it made.

This was the point when the group all suddenly became motivated to really make a difference and change the dump into an area the group could appreciate.

Now that the project is complete, everyone involved can look back and admire the finished product and feel extremely proud of what the group have achieved. Throughout the project there has been a strong link between the older and younger generations within Forres and some lasting friendships and connections have been established. The area the group have transformed now acts as a link between many of the footpaths in Forres, a sanctuary for wildlife and overall, a local amenity which will be used regularly by so many members of the Forres community.

The Falconer Museum, with the invaluable help of Anne Bennet, ran a successful exhibition detailing the history of the PLasmon Mill and the renovation work. You can view this exhibition online from here.

Marginal and Deep Water Plants

Major Planting Beneath Trees On Bank By Pond

Equisetum hyemale (horse tail)
Orontium aquaticum (deepwater plant)
Stratiotes aloides
Iris sibirica and laevigata
Menyanthes
Zantedeschia aethiopica (arum lily)
Aponogeton distachyos
Mentha aquaticum
Hostas mixed
Ligularia
Persicaria bistorta Superba

For Alkaline soil (toward sluice gate):
Philadelphus x lemoinei
Spiraea x vanhouttei
Spiraea x nipponica Snowmound
Cornus sanguinea

For Acid soil (rest of the bank):
Rhododendron Yakushimanum
Amelanchier lamarckii
Skimmia japonica
Skimmia Rubella
Prunus laurocerasus
Cornus alba Elegantissima
Willow

Underplanting

Grass And Bulb Planting

Anemone sylvestris
Lamium maculatum Beacon Silver
Mentha x gentilis
Mentha longifolia
Polystichum munitum

Willow Tree
Spiraea nipponica
Philadelphus Belle Etoile
Polystichum munitum
Myosotis scorpioides

Grass & Ferns/Marginals

Trees And Shrub Planting at top
of steep bank by Wildflower Meadow

Polystichum munitum
Iris sibirica
Myosotis scorpioides
Asplenium scolopendrium
Uncinia rubra
Carex variegata
Carex buchananii
Festuca glauca
Hostas
Ligularia
Persicaria bistorta Superba
Vinca minor

Betula utilis jacquemontii
Prunus serrulata
Cornus sanguinea
Cotoneaster frigidus Cornubia
Ligustrum ovalifolium Aureum
Photinia x fraseri Red Robin
Philadelphus x lemoniei
Buddleja
Deutzia

Pricklies On Steep Bank By Sluice

Bog Plants

Berberis x stenophylla
Berberis darwinii
Berberis thunbergii
Chaenomeles speciosa
Vinca minor

Equisetum hyemale (horse tail)
Polystichum munitum
Iris laevigata
Zantedeschia aethiopica (arum lily)
Gunnera
Hostas
Ligularia
Rodgersia
Carex