Rock Garden blocks being delivered to Campus Sterre on pallets.

The Rock Garden at UGent

A geological field course on campus

Three students taking strike and dip measurements on two blocks in the Rock Garden. From left to right, a student is lying on their stomach, head down, measuring the bedding plane of the first block; the middle student is crouching, compass in hand, working out the bedding plane; the righthand student is also lying down, measuring the bedding plane with a compass-inclinometre.
Students practice strike and dip measurements on a Rock Garden outcrop.

The Rock Garden is a geological field skills training resource on Campus Sterre, Ghent University. The main purpose of the Rock Garden is to provide geology students with more opportunities for practising their field skills in-between field courses. The Rock Garden is not a replacement for 'real-world' field work, but it does provide an accessible medium for students to learn and practise their field skills on a regular basis. We hope that this will help students maintain confidence in their field skills so that they are well-practiced and ready to use in real-world field trips.

Site 4: before work began.
Site 4: during work to install the blocks.
Site 4: after the blocks were installed and as Nature reasserts its presence.