Outdoor Hour Challenge: We are going to look for weed seeds this week….shouldn’t be too hard to do this time of the year in most areas. I took a walk last week and I noticed a lot of them along the trail. Take a few minutes to walk outside with your children and follow their lead. Point out some seeds and then challenge them to find some too. Keep it light and fun.
Special Activity:Weed Seeds This week you can go on the hunt for weed seeds. Look for three different kinds of seeds and write about them in your nature journal. You can use this printable page if you have access to the Ultimate or Journey level membership here on the Handbook of Nature Study.
Getting Started Suggestion:
If you already own the Getting Started ebook, complete Outdoor Hour Challenge #9.Complete a Small Square Study as part of your Outdoor Hour time this week. Pick a place that has some weeds and look carefully at the ground underneath, observing and recording all that you can see.
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The beginning of our seasonal milkweed study started actually back in May when we visited Yosemite National Park. This would have been our official spring observation and it was just starting to grow and be recognizable. The soft long leaves of the Showy Milkweed were a grey-green color and we did actually see some flower buds forming.
Showy Milkweed at Yosemite National Park – Half Dome
I couldn’t resist stopping during our bike ride to capture some milkweed with Half Dome in the background. No better spot to observe milkweed could there be in the entire world.
We didn’t observe any insects on the milkweed yet but I anticipate seeing some Milkweed beetles when we visit in a few weeks. If there are blossoms there may even be some monarch butterflies fluttering by.
In our local area I only know of one spot where there is milkweed naturally. I did attempt to grow some milkweed last year again but the roofers knocked my pot off the deck when they were replacing our roof. I almost cried. I need to get some more seeds and try again!
I need to start a nature journal page to record my seasonal milkweed study. For now, I have the photos printed and will add them before we complete our summer observations.
We all were aching to get on the road and start our week long camping trip in Oregon. Part of the joy of driving to Oregon are the views along the Northern California and Southern Oregon Coast. Amazing! The photo above is between Arcata and Crescent City along a stretch of the coast that at this time of year is ablaze with lupine…the fragrance is divine as you walk through the vegetation to the sandy beach.
When the boys get out onto to the sand for the first time it is pure joy! They stretch their legs after a long car ride and enjoy the Northern California wide open sandy beaches. We walked a long way, looking for beach treasures as we went. Then it was back into the car for the last leg of the trip over the California/Oregon border and up to Brookings and our beloved Harris Beach.
Yes! This is our campsite this year which overlooks the Pacific Ocean…looking westward and perfect for watching the sun go down each day. We were surprised at how light it was late into the evening…sunset was about 9 PM each day but it was light much longer than that.
Two of the days we were there we were able to take advantage of the negative tide and do some serious tidepooling.
Lots and lots of anemones to be seen…large and small!
Look carefully in this image and you can see the sea star’s “feet” that are clinging to the rocks at low tide. There were so many sea stars of many colors, sizes, and types. I love being able to see up close all the things we learned about from books.
I brought along a Stomp Rocket for the family to use on the beach. This was a fabulous idea and the boys (and mom and dad) each had turns stomping the rocket and watching it propel off down the beach.
We spent many, many hours walking the beaches and collecting colorful rocks…sometimes my pockets were all filled to capacity. I enjoyed sorting my rocks by colors on the picnic table at the campsite. I left them out each night and in the morning the dew would make them shiny and shimmery again.
These were my favorites…the red, green, and gray ones.
I also like this colorful kind which sort of looks like wood. I have a couple more rock related entries to share with you next month as part of my nature study goals and collecting various kinds of rocks. This was a great way to keep nature study at the forefront of our trip..love a good goal.
Mr. A was my fellow photographer at the tidepools. He was willing to really get out where he might slip and get wet to capture some great images of his own. He uses his cell phone camera and they turn our really great.
Here is a shot of my other photography buddy…Mr. D. He is more of an artist with his camera and takes his time to get just the right shot with the right setting. His images are amazing. This was also the very first time that our Kona dog has gone camping with us. She settled right in and had a great time. The wonderful thing about Oregon is that dogs are allowed on the trails as long as they are on a leash. She was able to take every hike with us…love Oregon!
We spent two different days in the redwoods hiking in the quiet stillness. We pretty much had the place to ourselves and it was so very refreshing. I already miss it. I am checking off another new hike on my 2013 Nature Study Goals, two down and two to go!
Can you just imagine how far you can walk on this Oregon beach? It was a windy day but it wasn’t cold so we took advantage of the open space and just roamed for a very long time. (I collected a few rocks too.)
Hello Mr. Snail!
Oh wow! These ferns were amazing! I loved seeing the black stems and the graceful way the fronds grow.
Aren’t they just incredibly pretty? I knew that our California Maidenhair fern had a black stem so I though maybe they were related. I looked it up when we got home and sure enough! This is the Northern Maidenhair fern.
On our last day we visited Crissey Field State Park which has a wonderful visitors center. We spent some time viewing all the nature displays and gathered some pamphlets for future use. We had a picnic lunch and then adventured out to the beach which is so very beautiful. Driftwood, dune plants and flowers, and a nice sandy beach are just what we needed to end our trip on a high note.
We were so happy that our trip turned out with gorgeous sunny skies for the majority of the week. We were able to do a lot of hiking, a lot of exploring, and enjoyed each other’s company while visiting the Southern Oregon Coast.
Until next time….
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Outdoor Hour Challenge: We are going to revisit a challenge from the archives this week. Milkweed (from the More Nature Study Autumn Ebook) Use the information in this challenge to get you started looking for milkweed in your own area.
Seasonal Milkweed Notebook Page Printable Use this printable page to record your seasonal milkweed study in each season. Start with your summer milkweed and then revisit it each season to observe the changes.
Getting Started Suggestion:
If you already own the Getting Started ebook, completeOutdoor Hour Challenge #8. Take along your magnifying lens when you observe your milkweed. Use it to get a really good look at the milkweed’s leaves, flowers, stem, and any insects you see on the milkweed. Record your observations on the notebook page in the ebook.
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This is the Oregon Coast Edition of the Wildflower and Weed Grid Study! I had a fun-filled week of hiking and beach-combing in Oregon and we had our eyes out for as many wildflowers as we could possible find. It wasn’t hard because each trail had an abundance of wildflowers for us to enjoy.
I tried to capture as man of them as I could to share with you in this post.
Blue Oregon Iris – These are a frequent flower along the trail.
Sea pinks along the shore…blowing in the wind, casting cool shadows.
Our campsite was filled with clover and daisies. Imagine…daisies so plentiful they seem like weeds!
Cow parsnip lines the roads and pops up along the shore. Some of these plants are super tall and the flower heads are enormous.
Inside Out Flower was found in the shady spots and it is one of my favorites from this trip. I decided to include a special page in my nature journal for it (see below).
We found patches of lupine along the Humbug Mountain Trail. This trail was a new one for us and what a view! It was a lot of fun to adventure up and we look forward to taking this trail again.
The Monkey flower was amazing! There were areas along the moist gully that just screamed yellow from this pretty flower.
A familiar sight along any redwood forest trail this time of year is the rhododendron….this one was a pale pink. This was spotted along the Shrader Old Growth Trail. This is a fun hike out of Gold Beach and worth the long dusty dirt road to get there. We had the trail all to ourselves on this morning. There is nothing like being out in the wilderness hiking along hearing the birds and nothing else.
One day we visited Crissey Field State Park which has an awesome visitor’s center and several trails. The beach there is wide and open which invites you to walk a long way next to the shore. This Sea Verbena was growing along the sandy dunes. My boys were entranced by all the driftwood and they spent about an hour just hunting among the piles for interesting shapes. Boys.
These are pretty little Seaside daisies….another one I really like and will be adding to my nature journal. I think the delicate fringe-like petals are the best part of this flower.
Smith’s Fairybells…another shade loving plant we saw a lot of as we hiked.
It always makes me happy to see where flowers naturally grow to make pretty color combinations. These sweet peas and daisies were found right along the edge of the bank in our campground.
Seaside Tansy…the interesting part of this plant are the fern-like leaves. They also grow right along the dry cliffside going down to the beaches.
This Tiger Lily was actually in Del Norte County, California. The drive up Hwy 101 takes you through Redwoods National Park where the Tiger Lilies are blooming profusely along the road. I had to stop and capture one for you! Gorgeous!
We found Wild Bleeding Hearts too! We have these planted in our garden here at home but it was fun to see them growing in their natural environment.
Aren’t these lovely? Western Azaleas grow in Harris Beach State Park and we always look forward to seeing their happy blossoms.
We saw many Wild Cucumbers blooming but this one had its fruit already formed. Isn’t it interesting? It is in the gourd family and you can see why when you see the fruits.
Here are the flowers from the Wild Cucumber.
I know this is a non-native invasive plant but we saw it on many of the trails. Wild Radish comes in a variety of colors…white, soft pink, light lavender.
This is my first unidentified wildflower…if anyone knows what it is you can leave me a comment.
EDIT: I think this is Yellow Parentucellia...figwort family. Range: Western Washington to NW California.
This is my second unidentified wildflower…yellow ones stump me for some reason.
This we saw in a pond at Lagoon Creek which is technically in California. Yellow Pond Lilies were blooming all over the pond.
So there you have all the interesting images that I could pull from my camera. We did see quite a few more and if you look closely at my Wildflower Grid nature journal page you will see them listed.
We went camping in Oregon for a week and while we were gone our garden decided to spring into life. I have it all on an automatic drip system so we knew it would be nicely watered in our absence. There were some surprises for us when we got back.
Our green beans have all started climbing their poles and I am afraid that I over-planted this veggie. We love green beans and I may need to learn how to preserve them so they don’t go to waste.
The tomato decided to really grow! It looks super healthy and I can hardly wait for the fruits to appear and ripen…then it will truly feel like summer.
The squash has come alive as well. The plants have green luscious leaves and seem to like the box I chose for them this year.
My patio tomatoes look fantastic…they are from Renee’s Garden in their Container Kitchen Garden Collection.
The Pots of Gold Chard (from Renee’s Garden Container Kitchen Garden collection) looks great too and I hope it is not going to get too hot for it before we harvest. I may pick some smaller leaves and add them to some soup.
The blackberries are thick with fruit this year. We had to trim the vines back because they were beginning to take over their little space over in the front corner garden. We had lots of berry treats in Oregon and it whetted my appetite for our own blackberries that will ripen next month. Then I will have blue stained fingers most mornings as I make my round of the garden, nibbling the delicious sweet berries.
There are lots of flower seedlings in my fence garden and I will share those as they mature and bloom. I can hardly stand the wait. The sunflowers are up tall and look like they will burst open with huge flower heads any day! That is always a fun time as they all start to blossom and the bees and butterflies arrive to enjoy them too.
Outdoor Hour Challenge Use the Wildflower and Weed Grid from this month’s newsletter to get started or to continue your nature study for this week. Pick a few of the prompts to complete as you spend just a few minutes outdoors. Pick a time of day that isn’t too hot so you will enjoy your time even more.
Printable Activity: Wildflower Photo Hunt Use the free printable to guide your wildflower and weed hunt this week…or save the photo hunt for when you visit a natural area with wildflowers.
Getting Started Suggestion:
If you already own the Getting Started ebook, complete Outdoor Hour Challenge #1. Spend your time outdoors with your children following their lead. You might tell them ahead of time that you are on the lookout for wildflowers and see if they can guide you to a spot they have observed wildflowers in the past. Keep it relaxed and fun!
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My lovely hedge bindweed is really spreading out in the area I am allowing it to grow. I know in my heart that it is a weed but when a plant grows all on its own, with no need for lots of water, and has a pretty flower, I am willing to let it have its way. There is a whole lesson in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 139) on hedge bindweed and it is also included in last year’s Vine Nature Study.
These are usually an early spring wildflower but I found a shady spot on our walking trail that had some blooming just this past week. We call them Fairy Lanterns but they are also known as White Globe Lilies. We see this one each year but I don’t think I have it in my nature journal…making a note to add it this week.
Now to the yellow multi-petal flower. I have such a hard time with identifying these sorts of flowers even using a local field guide. I will just enjoy it while it lasts along the trail.
It is the time of year that the Fireweed is blooming in our area…so pretty in its pinkish purple color.
There are two plants that run wild in our area and they are so common that you almost forget to stop and take a look. This is the Purple Vetch that grows like crazy along the roadsides and empty spaces. The second plant is the Sierra Nevada Pea….in shades of pink and purple.
We are enjoying our wildfower and weed grid study and will continue with it all month.
We are continuing to try new ways of cutting back our plastic consumption and this month we started to use stainless steel lunch box containers. I purchased two different kinds and we tested them out thoroughly on our last trip to Yosemite. Mr. A and I both packed our lunch and snacks in the stainless containers. The first thing we decided is that stainless steel is heavier than the plastic containers or baggies we have been using. It takes a bit of commitment to carry them in your day pack.
Mr. A used the ECO Lunchbox 3-in-1 container. He really liked the way it all fit together and he could keep his sandwich and chips from getting crushed in his day pack. He noted that they are not air tight so you don’t want to put anything in here that will leak. He also noted that his sandwich was a little dried out when he went to eat it.
I used the Kids Konserve Nesting Trio for my lunch. (One on top is the small container from Mr. A’s 3-in-1 Container.) I truly love these containers and have used them many times this month for on the go snacks and lunches. On this hike I packed two hard boiled eggs and some granola/dried fruit mix in the two containers. I found that my reusable hemp-cotton produce bag from Chico is the perfect way to carry the individual containers in my day pack (on my lap). This trio of containers comes with plastic lids and is leak proof.
Little by little we are finding new and acceptable ways to reduce our plastic consumption. I am always on the lookout for more ideas to implement, sort of a personal challenge.
We are going to be camping this month – Any camping related “using less plastic” tips? Leave me a comment.
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If you are a bird-loving family and are looking for fun as well as educational apps for your iPad, Larkwire Backyard Birder and Master Birder are two apps you may be interested in knowing more about. I received both apps as a gift from Larkwire (no other compensation) and I have been using these apps over the last few months to learn bird songs by ear.
The format for each app is similar and is based on the idea that you will view an image of a bird and then hear its song. After you have listened and are confident that you can recognize the bird’s song, you play a matching game with four birds at a time. This sounds easy but your ear really needs to be trained to hear the subtle differences in bird songs.
In the Gallery Game, the screen shows four birds and then quizzes you by playing the bird song and you pick the bird you think it is. If you match them correctly, it moves you on to the next song. If you miss it, you have a chance to replay the bird’s song and then continue with the game. You are allowed to choose which birds to learn and in what sequence by choosing groups of birds like birds with simple songs, birds with complex songs, songs with repeated notes, etc. I am working my way through the simple and complex sets with some success.
There is also a Search and Browse feature which lets you enter a bird’s name and then click over to hear calls and read a bit more about its distinctive song by state. You can also browse by category like hawks, owls, and woodpeckers. This is such a fun way to learn more about each bird family, learning which birds are related to each other.
The images used in these apps are stunningly clear and brilliant. I have enjoyed browsing the images which I know will also help me learn more birds that I can eventually identify.
Larkwire Apps I Reviewed Backyard Birder (California Top 25) allows you to choose your region/state and gives you the top twenty-five birds to learn. Priced at $3.95 for the desktop version and customizable to your region. The iTunes version is 99 cents and you customize it once you start to use it (per Phil at Larkwire). This was more than enough to get me started with my local birds and I highly recommend purchasing the songpack that is appropriate for your area. Don’t be surprised if after using this songpack when you hear your children identifying birds by ear…they pick up on them really fast!
Master Birder (land birds) allows you to select your level (beginner, intermediate, advanced, or master) and a song pack with 344 songs. Priced at $24.95 for the desktop version and from iTunes $14.99. I think this songpack will last me a very long time. There are so many birds to learn and to enjoy over the months and years to come.
There are many songpacks available allowing you to choose just what you need and can afford.
Not sure if your children will like Larkwire apps? Go ahead and try their free starter pack with 21 birds. You will not be disappointed.
The app is available in the iTunes store- look up Larkwire. This app is also available for your desktop computer but you need to purchase it through the website.
For more information about how to purchase and whether it will work on your device, see the Larkwire website.
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