Nearly 50 trees planted at the Montjoie school to green the playgrounds

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On this cloudy morning of Wednesday, December 18 in La Roche-sur-Yon, a multitude of little heads attending school Montjoie school put their hands in the ground to help the maintenance workers to planter of the shrubs in their cour of recreation.

Following a diagnostic dating from 2022the City works for the revegetation school lessons.

In an environmental and educational logic, the City’s objective is to de-waterproof spaces covered with bitumen and reincorporate green areas which absorb water in winter and provide coolness and shade in summer.

950 m2 of bitumen removed

This action marks the finality of the first project to dewaterproof schoolyards. In all, it is 950 m2 of bitumen which were removed from the 2,400 m2 of landor approximately 40% of the surface total.

For Sébastien Brunet, director of the education department of the city prefecture, behind the development of vegetation, “there is an educational process to help children understand the water cycle and connect them to nature”.

Cherry, lime, holm oak…

During the planting season (between November and February), these are a fifty trees and shrubs of several different species which will take up residence in the courtyard of the Montjoie school. Enough to transform it into a botanical garden.

During this period, 23 different species trees will be planted with help from children.

Among them: serrulata cherry tree, caramel tree, Portuguese bay laurel, cornus kousa, small holm oak…

100 000 euros

Of the 15 school groups, five have been classified priority : Pont Boileau, Pyramides and Moulin-Rouge are next on the list.

The City hopes to complete this first batch of schools by the end of 2026. As for the budget for each project, it will have to adapt depending on the design of the playgrounds.

Just for the Montjoie school project, the total cost rose to 100 000 € including €50,000 financed by the State Green Fund and €24,000 by the Pays de la Loire Region.

12 trees and 50 shrubs

The André Marlaux / Jean-Roy school followed the same approach. In the elementary courtyard, 321 m² have been renatured, i.e. 46% of the surface total. For the nursery yard, there are 88 m² of renaturation, or 32%.

THE overall costs work amounts to 67 000 €including €24,000 financed by the Green Fund for the waterproofing and renaturation aspects.

Ultimately, 12 trees and 50 shrubs were planted.

Greener and more mixed

Find a vegetation in the playgrounds remains the first objective of the City. “The future of courses is not asphalt,” explains Sébastien Brunet, supported by Alexandra Gautier, nature and climate director.

But for Michèle Jossier, the municipal councilor responsible for Equality between women and men, there is another issue just as important. “The boys took up most of the space with a soccer field and two basketball fields. The girls had no place to play.”

By removing a basketball court, the councilor wanted to ensure that the games are more mixed with space better distributed between girls and boys.

Ultimately, the City would like to obtain the labeling state Equality between girls and boys. Launched in 2022, this label aims to encourage act in favor of equality and diversity.

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