trees Archives

Posted on June 19, 2020 by Barb — Leave a comment

Outdoor Hour Challenge- Bristlecone Pine Nature Study

The bristlecone pine is a truly unique and amazing tree for a variety of reasons. For this challenge you will more than likely be using links and images to glean the interesting facts about the bristlecone pine rather than observing it up close in person.

Our family was able to hike to the bristlecone pines in Great Basin National Park a few years ago (see my account in this entry: Great Basin National Park). It took some effort but it was one that left an impression on us, the sense of time and the history that the trees have lived through. It also taught us that even in the harshest of environments, life can survive. What a metaphor for us right now!

Use these these links to learn a little about the bristlecone pine:

Look in your tree field guide for the bristlecone pine. If you need to use an online resource, check out these websites: National Park Service-Bristlecone Pine or Bristlecone Pine PDF.
You will learn a lot about the bristlecone pine by watching this video: NPS Bristlecone Pine.

See the High Desert ebook for more bristlecone pine nature study ideas and printables!

Please note that I will not be posting the complete challenge here on the blog but you will find the detailed challenge in the High Desert ebook that is available both in the Ultimate Naturalist and Journey level memberships. Sign into your account and download the ebook for the details, more links, and notebook pages.

If you don’t have a membership yet, you can click the graphic above and join today for immediate access to the 26 ebooks and so much more! Remember that all levels, even the Discovery level membership, include access to all of the archived newsletters!

Topics in this ebook include:

Bitterbrush
Sagebrush
Greater sage-grouse
Succulents
Mountain Lion
Coyote
Pocket Gopher
Bristlecone Pine
Elk
Turkey Vulture
Juniper
Snowberry
Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel
River Otter

Posted on June 12, 2020 by Barb — Leave a comment

Brand New! Outdoor Hour Challenge- Juniper Tree Nature Study

I love the juniper tree habitat found here in Central Oregon. It’s the quintessential landscape of the western United States with its rough and rugged tree bark and gnarly limbs. The juniper tree plays an important role in the habitat as shelter and food for the local animals and birds. Take some time to learn about this tree with blue berries as part of your nature study lessons this week.

I’ve included a few ideas below to help you get started. Then turn to the challenge in the High Desert ebook available in the Ultimate or Journey level memberships for more ideas to use with your family.

Common Species Found in the Western United States

¨ Western Juniper or Juniperus occidentalis

¨ Rocky Mountain Juniper or Juniperus scopulorum

¨ Utah Juniper or Juniperus osteosperma

Use these ideas to get you started with your juniper tree study:

Look in your tree field guide for juniper trees or use the links above for detailed information, including range maps.
You may wish to view this helpful video: Rocky Mountain Juniper.

See the High Desert ebook for more juniper nature study ideas!

Please note that I will not be posting the complete challenge here on the blog. You’ll find the detailed challenge in the High Desert ebook that’s available both in the Ultimate Naturalist and Journey level memberships. Sign into your account and download the ebook for the details, more links, and notebook pages.

If you don’t have a membership yet, you can click the graphic above and join today for immediate access to the 25 ebooks and so much more! Remember that all levels, even the Discovery level membership, include access to all of the archived newsletters!

Topics in this ebook include:

Bitterbrush
Sagebrush
Greater sage-grouse
Succulents
Mountain Lion
Coyote
Pocket Gopher
Bristlecone Pine
Elk
Turkey Vulture
Juniper
Snowberry
Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel
River Otter

Use the discount code NATURESTUDYFUN for $10 off an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership.

Posted on February 17, 2020 by Barb — Leave a comment

High Desert Habitat Resources and Ebook

High Desert Ebook cover graphic — Ultimate and Journey Level members can click this graphic to go directly to the library to download a copy of this new ebook. Make sure you are logged in and if you’re having trouble with your password, please leave me a comment or send me a direct email to receive my assistance. Email: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com

New Ebook is Now Available to Members!

The High Desert ebook is now ready for you to download and use with your family. This ebook has been a labor of love on my part because it is filled with some of my favorite topics and things I have in my own habitat. I have been anxious to share these subjects with you my blog readers for a long time!

I have included many links and resources for nature journal pages for your family to use in your nature study.

We will be working our way through this ebook in a few months so get ready to follow along. Please note that even though this ebook is titled “high desert”, many of the the topics can be found in other habitats. In most cases, I have suggested an alternative nature study idea to supplement or substitute for the ebook topic. I encourage you to give it a try!

There are 14 brand new Outdoor Hour Challenges for you to complete as part of your nature study lessons with your children. These Challenges are not based on information in the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock. You’ll be using internet links and field guides to glean information about each topic. See the bottom of this post for book and resource ideas you may wish to have as a supplement to this High Desert ebook.

This 63 page digital ebook has 14 challenges and supplemental activities
There are multiple custom notebooking pages for each of the topics. You can choose from simple notebook pages or more advanced notebooking pages.
There are 12 coloring pages.
Sample: High Desert Ebook Sample

Here are the specific topics included in this ebook:

Bitterbrush
Sagebrush
Greater Sage-grouse
Succulents
Mountain Lion
Coyote
Pocket Gopher
Bristlecone Pine
Elk
Turkey Vulture
Juniper
Snowberry
Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel
River Otter

How do you get the new High Desert ebook?

Members of the Ultimate Naturalist and Journey levels have access to the new ebook in their library. You need to click the “Members Area” button at the top of the website, sign into your account, and the ebook is there to download and save for your family to use when desired.

If you don’t have a membership yet, I’m offering a $5 off discount code that will be good towards your Ultimate Naturalist membership.

Discount Code: OHC10

Here are my favorite resources that I use all of the time in my own study of the High Desert habitat.

The Nature of Bend

Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest

Sagebrush Country-A Wildflower Sactuary
There is also a printable guide to plants of the High Desert found at this link:

Xeriscaping in the High Desert.

I have this printed out and I use it to plan my garden. It may be helpful as a supplement to your learning about this unique high desert landscape.

Please note the links above are Amazon affiliate links to books I own and love.

Posted on January 31, 2020 by Barb — Leave a comment

New Printables for Members! Learn More About Winter Leaves

Now available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships:

Lenticels Notebook Page and Winter Leaves – Marcescence Notebook Page

1. Leaf Lenticels Notebook Page: Research the topic of tree lenticels and then record your facts on this simple notebook page. Take a walk around your neighborhood to see if you can find any lenticles to observe up close.

2. Winter Leaves – Marcescence: This is a new topic for more advanced nature study. Research the topic of marcescence and then complete the notebook page for your journal.

(See the end of this post for more information on how you can become a member.)

Note: If you have any subjects you would like me to create nature notebook pages for, please let me know in a comment here on the blog or in an email: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com

Print a complete list of printables available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships by clicking the button above.

Use the discount code NATURE5 for $5 off an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership!

Posted on July 5, 2019 by Barb — Leave a comment

Outdoor Hour Challenge Summer Willow Year-Long Study

We’re coming up to our fourth and final willow tree study in our Year-Long Tree Study. Take some time this week to revisit your willow tree and make your summertime observations. You may wish to pull out your autumn, winter, and/or springtime observations to make some comparisons.

If this is the first time you’re studying a willow, follow the link to the challenge in the archives for suggestions to get started. All of the previous season’s studies are listed below for your convenience.

Link to the challenges in the archives:

Outdoor Hour Challenge – Summer Willow Study

The Summer Willow study is found in the Summer Nature Study Continues ebook. If you have access to this ebook in your Ultimate or Journey level membership, make sure to print out the notebook page that goes along with this challenge.

You’ll also find a complete list of tree nature study lessons (for every tree in the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock) here on this link.

Links to prior season’s Outdoor Hour Challenges:

Autumn Willow Nature Study

Winter Willow Nature Study

Spring Willow Nature Study

Don’t have a willow?

Complete a summer tree study for any tree you found during your outdoor time.

Posted on February 11, 2019 by Barb — Leave a comment

New February Printables for Members

Now available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships:

Tree Study Nature Study Notebooking Set

Salt Nature Study Printable Set

(See the end of this post for more information on how you can become a member.)

Tree Study Notebooking Page Set – You are going to love this set of tree nature study notebooking pages. Here are the trees included: black walnut, buckeye, catalpa, cedar, eucalyptus, Joshua tree, lodgepole pine, madrone, magnolia, palm, palo verde, ponderosa pine, redwood, smoke tree, and Western larch. 15 trees, 30 notebooking pages!

Salt Nature Study Printables – This is a set that has been shared over on my daughter’s website, Hearts and Trees. This printable set will be a great way to learn more about salt for a nature study unit.

Note: If you have any subjects you would like me to create nature notebook pages for, please let me know in a comment here on the blog or in an email: harmonyfinearts@yahoo.com

Print a complete list of printables available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships by clicking the button above.

Use the discount code NATURE5 for $5 off an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership!

Posted on January 23, 2019 by Barb — Leave a comment

Winter Bark Patterns Hike

Even though it’s been cold, wet, snowy, and icy, we ventured out to the local state park to walk along the river. We didn’t get very far because with my new hips, I didn’t want to take a chance of slipping on the ice. But, it felt good to be out in the fresh air looking at trees once again. I miss my long river walks!

Winter is the perfect time to focus on tree bark and see the beauty of each tree’s particular bark. It reminded me of a number of years ago when we studied trees in our family and my son and I decided that not all tree bark is brown. In fact, my son noted that most tree bark is more gray than brown. In the case of our ponderosa pines, the bark is more reddish than brown.

As we were observing the bark of this ponderosa pine, we also noted the colorful and interesting lichen growing there. The bright green lichen is my favorite!

Just a reminder: Be open to nature topics in addition to the week’s subject when you’re taking your outdoor time. We started off looking at tree bark but didn’t pass by the opportunity to enjoy the lichen.

So did your family do a bark pattern study? It’s a simple nature study activity that you can do even in the winter time.

If you’re completing the Outdoor Hour Challenge for Winter Trees, you can add a bark pattern study along with that one. See the Winter Tree challenge here: Looking at Trees in Winter.

If you’re a member here on the Handbook of Nature Study, the notebook page shown above is available to use in your nature journal.

The benefits of having a membership here on the Handbook of Nature Study make it a great value for your homeschooling, nature-loving family. There are 21 ebooks available for downloading, over 120 printable notebook pages and activities, and 76 newsletters. New printables are added every month and there are 4 new ebooks set to publish in the next year.

If you would like to have nature study ideas and printables available for immediate downloading, please consider an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership.

Use the discount code NATURE5 for $5 off an Ultimate membership.

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Barb — Leave a comment

Outdoor Hour Challenge – Learn About a Pine Tree

“At least one pine tree should be studied in the field. Any species will do, but the white pine is the most interesting….the leaves and cones may be studied in the schoolroom, each pupil having a specimen.”

Handbook of Nature Study, page 674

The wonderful thing about a pine tree study is that you can do it at any time of the year. Since they are evergreen, you can examine the needles even when there is snow on the ground. After that, look at the bark and find some cones too! Have a great time using the suggestions in the Outdoor Hour Challenge linked below and the lesson in the Handbook of Nature Study.

Winter Pine Tree Nature Study – Handbook of Nature Study Lesson 185 pages 670-675

Check the Handbook of Nature Study index for other tree related challenges for winter.

From the Original Challenge: Simple Suggestions for Pine Tree Study:

What is the general shape of the pine tree?
Is there one central stem running straight up through the center of the tree to the top?
What color is the bark? Is the bark ridged or in scales?
Study the pine leaves. Why are they called needles? How many needles in the bundle?
Does it have a cone?

Make sure to click the link below to read the entire Outdoor Hour Challenge with helpful links, nature study ideas, and suggested follow-up activities.

Winter Pine Tree Nature Study – Handbook of Nature Study Lesson 185 pages 670-675

If you’re a member here on the Handbook of Nature Study, you can download the Bark Patterns Notebook Page and use it as part of your tree study.

A custom notebook page for this challenge is available in the Ultimate Naturalist Library membership in the Winter Ebook. Log into your membership and scroll down to the ebook download link.

Amazon.com links to tree books I own and love!

A Walk in the Boreal Forest

My Favorite Tree- Click over to see my entry for this awesome book that also includes a free printable!

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Barb — 2 Comments

Our Winter Willow Observations-Buds, Galls, and Beavers

This was the week we made our winter willow observations. It’s been cold and snowy, but we put on our boots and hiked out to the willow we tied the string onto earlier in autumn. I’m glad we marked it with a string back in the autumn because right now all the willows look very similar.

Here’s a photo of the willow, leafless and bare except for a few straggly brown leaves.

Isn’t this color amazing? From a distance the willows are a rusty red but up close they are a bright orange. There are small buds just waiting to burst open once the season turns warmer.

It was exciting to find a rose shaped insect gall on a branch. I learned all about this interesting creation last year and it’s still thrilling to discover another one this season.

It looks like a wooden rose on the willow…so pretty.

It’s no surprise to us that the beavers have been harvesting branches from the willows since the autumn season. You can see the evidence of their work in the image above. This is just another chapter in our beaver story…I’ve grown to appreciate their part of the habitat and its changing development.

It’s never too late to start your own year-long willow study, even if you didn’t start it back in autumn. Pick up here and join us! Click the graphic below to go to the original winter study challenge here on the Handbook of Nature Study.

Perhaps you don’t have any willows to study in your neighborhood, but I invite you to take a look at the winter seasonal nature study ideas I’ve collected over the years. You may just find a topic that interests your family and you can get started with your own year-long study. Click the graphic below and see the complete list.

Winter Season Nature Study – Seasonal Ideas

Posted on January 4, 2019 by Barb — 2 Comments

New! Winter Willow Nature Study

This is the second in a series of willow studies that will guide you through a complete year of observing a local willow. The Autumn Willow Study featured the changing color of the foliage and the willow’s shape. Now, in the winter season, we will look at its twigs and buds.

Start Here: Willow Nature Study – Handbook of Nature Study Lesson 179 (pages 651-655)

Pay particular attention to suggestions #2 and #12 in Lesson 179 for specific winter-related willow study ideas.

You may also wish to look for galls on your willow. They are shaped like little wooden roses and are created by an insect during the summer.

Activity: Tie a string on a twig attached to your willow. Observe and record in your nature journal the twig’s changes for a few months. You can see our autumn willow study here in this entry: Beginning a Year Long Willow Study.

Both Ultimate and Journey level members here on the Handbook of Nature Study have access to a new winter willow notebooking page for recording your winter observations. Look for it in your printable library.

If you want to become a member here on the Handbook of Nature Study, you can click the Join Us button for more details. Benefits include those shown above including access to ebooks, notebooking pages, archived newsletters, and new ebooks and printables published during your membership.

Category: trees

Outdoor Hour Challenge- Bristlecone Pine Nature Study

Brand New! Outdoor Hour Challenge- Juniper Tree Nature Study

Use the discount code NATURESTUDYFUN for $10 off an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership.

High Desert Habitat Resources and Ebook

Here are my favorite resources that I use all of the time in my own study of the High Desert habitat.

New Printables for Members! Learn More About Winter Leaves

Print a complete list of printables available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships by clicking the button above.

Use the discount code NATURE5 for $5 off an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership!

Outdoor Hour Challenge Summer Willow Year-Long Study

New February Printables for Members

Now available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships:

Print a complete list of printables available in the Ultimate and Journey level memberships by clicking the button above.

Use the discount code NATURE5 for $5 off an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership!

Winter Bark Patterns Hike

If you would like to have nature study ideas and printables available for immediate downloading, please consider an Ultimate Naturalist Library membership.

Outdoor Hour Challenge – Learn About a Pine Tree

Our Winter Willow Observations-Buds, Galls, and Beavers

New! Winter Willow Nature Study

Outdoor Hour Challenges for families since 2008!