The first teasel I ever saw was in New York at Anna Botsford Comstock’s cottage on Cayuga Lake.
This week’s Outdoor Hour Challenge was to look for and observe some Teasel. We were not expecting to see any teasel this week and we didn’t…not too disappointed and we didn’t let it stop us from taking some hikes to see some other weeds with prickles and interesting flowers.
We observed something with prickles….Yellow Star Thistle. This is a menace in our neighborhood and I immediately pull it out by the roots if I see it in my yard. We have friends that have a honey business and they insist that star thistle honey is the best. It is very light tasting and is one of my favorites.
Sometimes you just need to go with whatever subjects present themselves.
We are experiencing the King wildfire in our area which is a little scary. Each day we looked at the smoke and clouds and wondered how far it would come our way. Some of our friends were evacuated but so far we are safe here at home. The drought conditions in California are so severe and those dry conditions coupled with heat and windy afternoons make for perfect “fire weather”. This is from the bottom of my road.
This is from yesterday in town looking towards the fire. They call those clouds above the smoke “pyrocumulous“.
Yikes.
We are all praying for the fire to be contained and for all those evacuees to be allowed home to their homes. My husband is working on this fire but is in management with a job behind the scenes at base camp. He is tired but doing okay…this is what they do and they are accustomed to being under stress in emergency situations.
Hope you had a chance to get outside and look for some teasel or other weeds this week!
This Outdoor Hour Challenge is included in the new Autumn Nature Study Continues ebook. It is only one of fifteen nature study topics included along with notebook pages and coloring pages. If you have an Ultimate or Journey level membership, you will find this ebook in your library!
#2- Identify and journal three new birds. Two out of three done!
I have completed the Bewick’s Wren and Clark’s Nutcracker.
#3- Identify and journal three new rocks. Once again, I am failing at this goal. I need to refresh my memory and make a plan. (See below for my new plan to accomplish my goals.)
#6- Post a nature photo of the week for the entire year. Up to date!
#7- Camping in all four seasons.
So our spring trip didn’t happen because of my road trip to the East Coast with my daughter…BUT we have gone on three camping trips this summer! (We have a camping trip planned for the end of September and then another in December…plus a trip for spring 2015 to the Grand Canyon!)
My New Plan For Accomplishing my Goals
I have added a Nature Study Goals box to the Nature Study Planning Page in the newsletter for October (take a peek at the original page in this entry). This may remind me and all of you too of your nature study goals each month. Let me know how it helps you or if you have any other ideas for the planning page.
Make sure to have your outdoor time this week even if you don’t have any teasel to study. We don’t have any in our local area so we will be looking back on photos from past trips and also looking for local weeds and wildflowers to view.
Inside Preparation Work:
Read pages 539-542 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 147). There is a lot to learn about this plant so read the narrative carefully for facts about the stem, leaves, and flowers that you can share when you observe your teasel.
Here is an interesting YouTube video on teasel: http://youtu.be/3-aEQYk3hs0 It is a little long and includes quite a bit about the medicinal properties of teasel so preview and share as much as you find helpful. This is another more academic video on YouTube: http://youtu.be/gCWDkkCJBnY
You can follow this link to see what kind of teasel you have in your state:USDA Teasel.
Ebook Users: Make sure to view the images in the ebook together with your child so you can will know what to look for.
Beware! The teasel plant has extremely sharp spines both on the flower head and on the stem. Take along a pair of heavy work gloves if you intend to touch the plant, cut it for your nature table, or bring it home to examine more closely.
Outdoor Hour Time:
Use your outdoor time this week to go on a teasel hunt.
If you find a teasel that is blooming, examine the pattern of blossoms. This is what makes this plant so interesting. The blossoms will begin at the middle!
Look for water in the little cups made at the base of the teasel leaves.
Allow time for an outdoor sketch of the teasel.
You may wish to record the location of your teasel plants so you can return to observe them during the winter to note the changes.
NOTE: If you don’t have teasel to observe, pick a different weed or wildflower to view during your outdoor time.
Follow-Up Activity:
Create a nature journal entry after discussing all of the teasel’s unique features. Ebook Users: You can use the notebook pages in the ebook for your entry. Younger children can use the coloring page.
Advanced Activity: Start a seasonal study of the teasel plant by starting a nature journal entry with a sketch and detailed description of your autumn teasel. Make a note to return to your teasel plant sometime in the winter to make a comparison and add to your nature journal entry.
Advanced Study: Take a look into this topic:Teasel. You might also like to read and view the images on this site: Teasel. For information on medicinal uses, you can view this page: Teasel Root. Add any information you find interesting to your nature journal page. If you are using the notebook page in the ebook, you can continue making notes on the back if you run out of room.
Join us for this series of challenges every week here on the Handbook of Nature Study. If you want to purchase the Autumn Nature Study Continues ebook so you can follow along with all the notebooking pages, coloring pages, and subject images, you can join the Ultimate or Journey Membership Levels. See the Join Us page for complete information. Also, you can view the Autumn Nature Study Continues content list on the announcement page.
Note these are affiliate links to products I love!
We were so excited to start the new series of Outdoor Hour Challenges this week with the Salvia Flower Study.We even went out and purchased a new type of salvia to begin our study with.
I was interested in researching more about salvia and the name “scarlet sage” as listed in the Handbook of Nature Study lesson.
We tried to observe a bee in our salvia but not this time. We did talk about how the bee needs to duck inside to reach the nectar wells.
Now that I am looking at these images in a large format on my computer, I can see the fuzziness of the salvia which is just like the sage we have in our front yard.
The leaves on our two different salvia plants are completely different.
Our autumn flowers have been a little slim pickins this year. But there have been some surprises around the yard, including this sunflower that came from a seed that fell from the birdfeeder right into a pot on my back deck. I wasn’t sure it was going to actually bloom but here it is!
It is gorgeous and we enjoyed watching the bees visit it…no wonder! There is so much pollen coming from this sunflower that they can actually just bathe in it as they fly in and out.
Look at that pollen!
These zinnias are from my dad’s garden…he had saved seeds from last year and sprinkled them in his flower bed a few months ago. Now, they are blooming like crazy with a variety of flowers that dazzle the eye.
He also has a bank next to his driveway that he has filled with different colors of lantana. This one is my mom’s favorite color and the hummingbirds and butterflies love it too. This is a great plant to have in your garden to attract birds and insects for observation. (Note to self…plant lantana when we can have a garden again.)
Our little explorers were more interested in watching birds this week and not going on a flower hunt. Maybe next time….
We also looked at ants this week since there was a whole nest of them under a rock we turned over to look for insects. Can you believe all the leaves that have fallen already in my backyard?
I forgot to take photos of their flower drawings but here is mine.
Here is a sketch that one of the boys did of a black widow spider. He had seen one in his garage and decided to draw it using a book I have on how to draw insects.
It was a really great week observing flowers as the autumn season starts. We will continue to keep our eye on flowers as we work through the next few flower challenges.
This Outdoor Hour Challenge is included in the new Autumn Nature Study Continues ebook. It is only one of fifteen nature study topics included along with notebook pages and coloring pages. If you have an Ultimate or Journey level membership, you will find this ebook in your library!
Great Basin National Park is a surprising place…way out in the middle of a lot of nothing-ness (close to both the Utah and Nevada borders). It takes some planning and forethought to get there but it is worth the effort. We stayed three days earlier in August along with my husband, son, and two of his friends.
We camped in one of the five campgrounds in the park, Baker Creek which is three miles up a gravel road that is accessible to most cars whether they have four wheel drive or not. We looked at each of the other campgrounds during our stay and they each have their own benefits so make sure to read about them on the website. All are first come, first serve so arrive early in the day for the best selection of sites. There are no hook-ups for RVs, all have simple vault toilets, and there are no showers….making for a real camping experience. There were lots of trees, nice picnic tables, and a babbling creek that some children were exploring when we were there.
The nearest place to perhaps find a room is in Baker, Nevada but Ely, Nevada is not too far either. Baker had a little grocery store (very limited), a cafe, and a gas station. The national park does not have a store except for a gift shop. There is a small cafe at the Lehman Caves Visitor Center.
There are two visitor centers at Great Basin National Park. The Great Basin Visitor Center (closest to the highway) is superb! We thoroughly enjoyed the interactive exhibits, historical displays, and nature based information that was presented. You can learn all about the bristlecone pines, the Great Basin habitat, and all the creatures found in this unique desert environment.
Great Basin National Park is trying to make a name for itself as a dark sky destination for viewing the night sky beauty. It bills itself as “one of the last true dark skies in America“. We wish we had been able to experience that part of the park but because of the super moon and the clouds…it wasn’t a great star viewing weekend. It will go back on the bucket list for future visits. You can find a schedule of astronomy events on the park’s Astronomy page.
The second other visitor center is the Lehman Caves Visitor Center. This wasn’t as updated or interactive as the other center but still very informative and interesting. We booked our cave tour here early in the morning and we only had a few choices of times available. Make reservations or arrive early to make sure to fit in a tour of the caves. There are two different cave tours and we took the ninety minute tour which takes you to every room open to the public. It was amazing!
I have been to quite a few caves but this one by far is the most interesting and beautiful of all. I also want to note that this cave has lots of tight confined spaces that you have to fit through (usually by turning your body sideways) and lots of low ceilings. I am fairly tall (5′ 10″) and many times I had to walk a distance with my head down to avoid touching the ceilings. Just a warning. This tour is appropriate for all ages as long as they are comfortable with walking since you can’t take strollers, carriers, or even backpacks on this tour.
There are also Park Ranger programs you can attend by viewing the schedule in the park newspaper or asking at either visitor center. The day we were there they were offering up scopes to few the sun and an interpreter to tell you all about what you are looking at.
There is a Jr. Ranger program at Great Basin National Park that we observed quite a few of the children participating in….ask at either visitor center for information. They also have a “Cave Cadet” pin so ask about that too!
My guys enjoyed the viewing scopes to look down from the park across the Great Basin…
Our group split up on hiking day. Three of use hiked the Bristlecone Trail and two hiked to the top of Wheeler Peak!
The trail up to the Bristlecone pines was empty when we hiked up early in the morning (around 8:30 AM). There is a rather large parking lot at the trailhead but it was FULL when we got back later in the morning. There are vault toilets (clean) in the parking lot once you wind your way up the road from the visitor’s center. It is a very high altitude and the views as you round the corners are majestic.
Bristlecone Pine Trail:The hiking trail itself is a little longer than posted at closer to 3.1 miles and not 2.8, as measured by our pedometers. It is a moderately difficult hike because of the length and elevation when you end up at a little over 10,000 feet.
Our group thoroughly enjoyed the hike and then the interpretive trail with signs teaching you more about these ancient trees. More information on the hike here.
Fascinating to think about how old some of these trees are and after going through the interpretive trail I am fairly sure I can identify these interesting trees.
View from the trail…amazing light and clouds the whole day long!
Wheeler Peak Summit Trail: We dropped the other group off at the Summit trailhead and they started off at around 8 AM. It is advised to start early so you aren’t up on the peak when the threat of afternoon thunderstorms roll in. There is a very small parking lot for this trailhead so plan to have someone drop you off or get there early. This is a very strenuous hike and fairly long at 8.6 miles roundtrip. You start at 10,100 feet in elevation and gain 2,900 feet going up to the summit. My son said the last portion of the hike is all exposed with no tree cover.
These two young boys completed the hike and said it was worth the effort because of the beautiful view from the top. I will take their word for it.
There is a turnout alongside the road where you can use these telescopes to look up at the peak. We could actually see people up there but not our boys.
One evening we walked along this trail which parallels Baker Creek and ended at our campground. What a beautiful place with the aspen trees, green grass, and the sound of running creek water.
There were lots of wildflowers which makes me happy.
Plenty of fungi to observe too!
Not so very glamorous after a week of camping and no showers at Great Basin. Our children are all growing up so we treasure the time we have to spend with even just one of them during a camping adventure. Planting seeds of appreciation for the natural world gifted to us by a loving Creator is something we highly value and have tried to do throughout our years as parents. Seeing our youngest share his love of the outdoors with his friends makes me smile from ear to ear.
Thanks for coming along on our Great Basin experience!
Some other things to know about Great Basin National Park:
No entrance fee!
There is a ticket cost for the cave tours.
This is the desert but it gets cold here so make sure to bring a jacket or sweatshirt even in the summer.
Outdoor Hour Challenge – Salvia Nature Study Autumn Nature Study Continues Ebook
We are starting off our new Autumn Nature Study Continues series with the study of a beautiful bee-loving plant, salvia. This is a great garden plant or one you can actually grow nicely in a pot on a patio or deck.
Please note that if you don’t have any salvia to study this week….pick another garden flower and create an “autumn flower” nature journal page instead. See the ideas listed below for some ideas on how to accomplish a simple and fun flower study with your family.
Inside Preparation Work:
Read pages 579-581 in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 161). Make sure to read the Leading Thought to get the focus of your study in mind. Pick any of the suggested activities to learn more about the salvia flower.
Make sure to go to the images for Salvia at the end of the ebook. You will see a bee on a salvia flower gathering his nectar. Here is an additional short YouTube video: http://youtu.be/XSAYCKvaM8g
There are many varieties of salvia. Look at your local nursery for salvia for your garden or make plans to purchase some next spring. You can also look up your state’s native salvia plants by Googling “state name native plant salvia”. (I just purchased some salvia at my local Home Depot.)
Outdoor Hour Time:
Spend fifteen minutes this week exploring your early autumn garden. If you have some salvia (or really any flower) you can view in person, sit quietly and watch for any bees that might come to visit the flower.
Make sure to look at any flower you have access to this week, looking carefully at the structure of the flower. Note the bracts and calyx of each flower. (Other garden challenges and printables are found on the Garden Tab at the top of the website.)
Follow-Up Activity:
Pull out the Handbook of Nature Study and find the diagram on page 580 showing the blossom of the sage with the parts labeled. You will also see how the bee gets into the blossom to get the nectar.
Create a nature journal entry with a sketch of salvia and a caption.
Ebook Users: You can use the notebook page included. Younger children can use the coloring page. The advanced study notebook page will help you dig a little deeper into your study of salvia. There is also a bonus Autumn Flower Study notebook page to use with any flower your find during this challenge.
Advanced activity: Dissect a salvia flower, creating a journal page showing the flower parts labeled. Make sure to explain how a bee gathers its nectar from the salvia.
Additional Activity: Make it a fun flower study activity for your creative child! Put some garden flowers in a vase on a table along with sheets of paper, colored pencils, and magnifying lenses. Invite your child to make a sketch for their nature journal or to put on your nature table.
Join us for this series of challenges every week here on the Handbook of Nature Study. If you want to purchase the Autumn Nature Study Continues ebook so you can follow along with all the notebooking pages, coloring pages, and subject images, you can join the Ultimate or Journey Membership Levels. See the Join Us page for complete information. Also, you can view the Autumn Nature Study Continues content list on the announcement page.
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Interested in entering a giveaway for a $10 Amazon.com gift card?
This month’s newsletter has a “mystery photo” for children (under the age of 18) to try to identify. Full instructions for submitting a guess are included on page 3 of the September newsletter.
Make sure to submit your guess according to the rules in the newsletter by 9/7/14 at midnight in order to have a chance at a $10 Amazon.com gift card.
Have fun guessing!
NOTE: All subscribers to the Handbook of Nature Study blog entries will receive the newsletter download as a separate email on the first of every month. Some people have this email go to their SPAM inbox so check there if you don’t see it in your regular email inbox. If you are a new subscriber, you will get a follow-up email upon subscription with the current newsletter downlink inside. Also, Ultimate and Discovery level members have each and every newsletter in their download library. Members will need to log into their account to find the download links.
Please read the following explanation outlining how to get this month’s newsletter.
The newsletter link is not in this email but will come separately.
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If you need to subscribe:
You will need to go to the Handbook of Nature Study, look to the top right corner for the box to type in your preferred email address, and then confirm the email that comes to your email inbox.
Once you subscribe, you will receive a thank you email from me with the download link.
This month’s newsletter link will be available only during the month of September so be sure to download it before 9/30/14.
Contents of this edition of the newsletter include:
3 fall flower related articles with loads of practical ideas
Nature Table ideas from a veteran Outdoor Hour Challenge participant
Spotlight Family – The Vels
Newsletter Contest – Mystery Photo
The next month’s selections for Preschool Nature Table
BRAND NEW! Mom’s Planning Page: Use this printable page to plan your month’s nature study. There is a place to create notes to remind you of ideas you want to implement and then reminders for year-long study projects, extra topics that come up during the month, and then to send in your entries for the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. See below!
Please note that Ultimate Naturalist and Journey level members have access to members only printables each month in addition to the newsletter printables. You will need to log into your account and then go to the “Other Releases” section.
Does the summer seem to be slipping away for your family like it is for ours? The month of August has had some wild weather that included thunder and hail storms here…not normal at all. I think I am ready for September’s gifts of changing colors and honestly I think the air is different too.
Thank you to this month’s blog carnival participants and I hope that there will be some new faces as we start the new Outdoor Hour Challenges for autumn. Make sure to print tomorrow’s newsletter for a new printable nature study planner page for you to stay on top of the topics and to create a reminder for you!
Our families August entries from this month’s study (in case you missed one):
Bristlecone Pine Tree – sneak peak into our trip to Great Basin National park
Evening Primrose Study
Nelleke from Educaion is a Life is sharing their most wonderful Evening Primrose Study with the carnival this month! Don’t miss reading and seeing their experiences.
Potpourri
Janet from Pursuing Joy in the Journey has submitted two excellent nature study entries for you to enjoy. The first is their experience with Big Butterfly Count and the other is their Park Trip with some relaxed nature study with a little one.
Michelle from Following Footprints share their Summer Strolls in the Sequoiaswith carnival readers in this edition of the carnival. They love these giant trees as much as I do…please stop by and view her images. They also have started a new project- The Beginning of a Year Long Tree Study: Our Apple Tree. Take a look at the first season and their nature journals too.
Carol from Journey and Destination submits their entry Rocks and Wildflowers for you to view. I love the learning going on in their part of the world, both the nature journals and the sandstone information is worth a look.
Nadene from Practical Pages has submitted their entry Spring Blossoms to the carnival. It is crazy to think that they are just heading into spring as we are going into autumn. She shares not only some beautiful images but excellent examples from their nature journal. Inspiring!
Angie from Petra School is sharing their Nature Study Planning for High School. So many great thoughts in this entry and I encourage all who have a little bit older student to read and apply her suggestions. Thanks Angie!
Don’t forget to share your blog entries with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. All entries done in September are eligible for the next edition. Send them directly to me: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com.
