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Posted on June 4, 2013 by Barb — 5 Comments

Garden Update – Renee’s Garden Seeds

This year Renee’s Garden sent me my whole seed order as a gift so that I could share my results with my dear blog readers. I love the selection of seeds found at Renee’s Garden and I have grown them in my garden for many years. I usually order them directly from their website but my dad purchased his whole garden seed order at our local Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) which would even be easier!

We got our seeds in the ground last month and we are already seeing tremendous growth in the veggie and flower gardens!

Our Blue Lake pole beans have all sprouted and with the heat we are getting this week we should probably see them double in size. The seeds we planted are from Renee’s Garden Organic Seed Collection. I am so thrilled to have these in my garden that I planted two different boxes with these green bean sesds. I am anxious to see how they taste!

This is something new for our family from Renee’s: Tricolor Zucchini. The zucchini seeds are mixed in the packet and contain three different kinds of squash. The seedlings look strong and are growing like crazy. I have a whole houseful of zucchini lovers so hopefully we will get our fill of squash this summer.

A whole row of sunflowers…which need to be thinned a bit. We have three really big ones which were self-sowed from last year’s crop but there are some little seedlings that we planted from our Renee’s Garden seeds. There are Van Gogh, Chocolate Cherry, and Royal Flush.

We planted plenty of morning glories right in the middle of our back garden. I am hoping they do well here and have been watching them grow week by week. Morning glories make me super happy and I love to draw them in my nature journal…relaxing. The seeds we picked are a heritage blend that are traditionally grown to decorate fences and mailboxes.

There are also some really pretty showy flowers in the garden right now which are not from Renee’s Garden but I want to share with you.

The hydrangeas are very happy this year and this is my favorite color…so delicate.

In my container deck garden there is a beautiful calla lily blooming. This plant always surprises me when it pops back to life after the winter weather. It soon will be a whole pot full of blooms which the hummingbirds and I will enjoy.

It is very hard to believe that it is day lily blooming time but they are all budding out and a few are blossoming.

I love the peachy color of this day lily and am always happy to see it in bloom in my butterfly/hummingbird garden.

There are lots more of Renee’s Garden seeds to share and I will as the season progresses. I am always happy to share our favorite seed company with my blog readers.

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Barb — 3 Comments

Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival: Garden Flower Edition

Garden flowers are some of my favorite nature study subjects of all time. Each flower is so unique and wonderful. I hope that your family was able to get outside this month and at least observe some flowers or crop plants up close. I invite you to read what some of the other Outdoor Hour Challenge families have done this month.

Our family’s garden flowers and crop plant entries from this month’s study (in case you missed one):

Garden Flowers Close to Home
Garden Flowers Focus- Using Notebook Pages
Petunia Study Using the Handbook of Nature Study

Be inspired. Be encouraged. Get outdoors!

Photo credit: Alex from Life on a Canadian Island

Garden Flower Grid Study
Eva shares Grandma’s Flower Gardening Tips with this edition of the carnival. These are some great tips…you must read!

Angie from Petra School submits their garden entry: The Gardens at Mil Mar. She has some beautiful Pacific Northwest flowers like rhododendrons and azaleas. Pop over and see how she grows her tomatoes!

Angie from Petra School also would like to share some of their garden updates: Schooling in Summer. Scroll down and see how those tomatoes are growing.

Alex from Life on a Canadian Island shares their In Our Garden – Garden Flowers Nature Study with you. She has some gorgeous images of their early spring flowers and some ideas for additional flower resouces.

Tricia from Hodgepodge submits her Garden Flower Study in Phone Photos entry for you view and enjoy. She shares how their family has noticed so many garden flowers and changes as the month went by.
Focus on Garden Flowers
Jennifer from Royal Little Lambs has shared her Garden Nature Study entry with the carnival. She shows how they have visited the flower nursery, prepared their garden, and planted many, many things to enjoy in the months to come.

Cristy from Cristy’s Nature Journal has put together a fabulous entry: Planting Sunflowers and Watching Them Grow. She shares in words and images how their sunflowers have progressed towards their eventual Sunflower House! I love it!

Barbara and her family completed a study of their garden strawberries using the Handbook of Nature Study. Please click over to read her entry Learning about Strawberries on her blog, The Schoolhouse on the Prairie.

Photo Credit: Alex from Life on a Canadian Island

Potpourri
Alex from Life on a Canadian Island has submitted their Yellow Spotted Salamanders, One Frog and Many Eggs at Dead Man’s Pond. This is a follow up entry from last months reptiles and amphibians study. What a fascinating look at their salamanders!

Diana from Homeschool Review has put together their Outdoor Hour Challenge-Reptile and Amphibian entry for you to enjoy. They are following up on last month’s theme now that their weather has warmed up.

Claire from Angelicscalliwags pops into this edition of the carnival with her entry: Nature Study-Our One Year Pond Study. I invite you to click over and view her wonderful images and be inspired to start your own pond study.

Shirley Ann from Under an English Sky shares their OHC-Wildflowers entry with the carnival. Her family has done an excellent job collecting, identifying, and recording their lovely English wildflowers. I love this time of year!

Don’t forget to share your blog entries with the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. All entries done in June are eligible for the next edition. The deadline for entries is 6/29/13.

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Posted on May 30, 2013 by Barb — 2 Comments

Rock Study #4: Granite!

This month we made sure to observe carefully the granite rocks in Yosemite National Park. We didn’t collect any because that isn’t allowed in a national park but we did learn a little more about the granites found there with a trip to the Visitor’s Center. They have a fabulous display of granites, showing the rock cycle and the way this particular granite was formed.

Everywhere you go in the park you are surrounded by granite! Granite of all shapes and sizes lines the trails and creates the majestic valley walls you see all around you. The biggest piece of granite that looms over you in the valley would be El Capitan.It is a rock climber’s heaven and we read in the Visitor’s Center that the granite that makes up El Capitan was cooled slowly which makes it particularly strong and resistant to erosion. We watched the climbers up there on the nearly 3,600 foot granite face…amazing courage to be up there!

The exhibit has many interesting facts about the granites of Yosemite National Park.

There were also samples of the different granites from different areas of the part…each one with a little different combination of elements. Fascinating!

So even though we didn’t actually collect a sample from Yosemite, we have plenty of other granite samples from our travels locally. We are continuing to work our way through the Rocks, Fossils, and Arrowheads book.

We have high hopes of studying two rocks in June as we travel to Oregon. I know that if we didn’t make this project part of the nature study goals for 2013 we would have let it drop. But, I am determined to get as many done this year as possible.

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Barb — 3 Comments

Outdoor Hour Challenge: Table Top Garden

Outdoor Hour Challenge:
A fun way to learn about plant parts is to grow a table top garden with a few root vegetables. This week I challenge you to make a table top garden with your children. Keep it simple and start with one veggie and see the way it grows roots and stem and leaves. This is an easy project for any age.

Instructions on Hearts and Trees: Indoor Nature Study Idea: Table Top Garden
These instructions include a free downloadable notebooking page to go along with your table top garden.

Add your table top garden to your nature table as an on-going nature study experience.

Activity Suggestion: Create a Garden Flowers Nature Table

Free Printable Nature Table- Garden Flowers

Getting Started Suggestion:
If you already own the Getting Started ebook, complete Outdoor Hour Challenge #3. Use this challenge to help you draw your table top garden as you make your observations. Use the notebooking page in the ebook or the free one noted in the challenge above.

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Barb — Leave a comment

Petunia Flower Study Using the Handbook of Nature Study

Pretty Petunia Nature Study in My Garden

Purple and pink petunias are a garden favorite around here. Well, any purple flower is my favorite but petunias are a great color spot even in my vegetable garden.

I decided years ago that I like to mix up my garden boxes and include pretty flowers as well as veggies.This year we planted marigolds and petunias to add that splash of color for the early spring boxes.

I am looking forward to spending some time observing my petunias over the summer season and completing a petunia nature study…especially to see how the insects navigate the flower tube.

You can find a Petunia Flower Study notebooking page in last week’s Petunia Flower Study Challenge.

Have you planted your petunias yet?

Some extra links for you:
Wild Petunia Coloring Pages
How to Deadhead Your Petunias -YouTube

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Barb — 5 Comments

Yosemite in Spring- Waterfalls and Biking

Nature Study Goal – Visit Yosemite in all four seasons.

Our spring trip to Yosemite National Park happened this past weekend…under brilliant blue skies and with warm spring breezes. Our original plans were for my husband and I along with the two younger boys to make the trip. When it came down to it, my nineteen year old and I were the only ones who were able to go. Fire season came early this year so my husband had to work a fire in Southern California. See? I always make plans but then remain flexible.

We were up and out of the house early and hit the road for the four hour drive to Yosemite. The time went by fast and I have to say it is super nice to have children that can drive me places while I enjoy the scenery flash by the window. After an uneventful trip there, we parked at Curry Village and took the shuttle to the trailhead at Happy Isles.

The trail to the bridge below Vernal Falls is mostly paved and sections are rather steep. The biggest obstacle are all the people! This is a popular day hike and on this particular Saturday….lots and lots people from all over the world. My son commented on how many different languages he heard as we hiked…Yosemite is a world-class destination for sure.

The one thing I really like about this hike is that you can hear and see the river as you hike. This makes it appear cooler and it reminds you that there will be a spectacular view just around every corner. I am always amazed at the power of water.

Here is what the lower trail looks like as you go from Happy Isles up to the bridge below Vernal Falls. Granite boulders and slabs surround you and the river runs along one side.

From the bridge up the trail to the falls the trail turns into slippery wet granite steps. You can tell how steep they are by observing how much the hikers are leaning over as they climb.This part is called the Mist Trail because you get the spray from the waterfall drenching you with water. I didn’t capture it this time but you can see whole rainbows in the misty air coming off the waterfall as you look over and back. Amazing!

Want to see how wet you get? Here is a video: Mist Trail at Yosemite National Park

At last! I am up at the top of Vernal Falls after a last heroic effort of encouragement from my son. He was such a great hiking partner and really cheered me on when I thought I had gone as far as I could up the HUGE granite steps and then inching my way up the last ledge with just a hand railing to keep me from falling off the cliff. See my smile? I was happy to up there and it was so very much worth the effort for this 50+ year old woman to be there. It helps that I have lost 40 pounds in the last three months…not so much weight to haul up the trail.

Here is the video from the top: Vernal Falls.

We had lunch and then hiked further up the trail to the bridge below Nevada Falls which was beautiful this time of year. We took our time going back down the trail and called it a day. Our tent cabin at Curry Village was super clean and comfortable. I think I slept better that night than I have in the last six months. I highly recommend the tent cabins at Curry Village for a camping experience without the fuss of taking your own equipment.

Milkweed with Half Dome in the distance

Our second day was spent biking around Yosemite Valley on the bike trails. This is my favorite way to take in the sights and we made the grand loop from Curry Village to Yosemite Village and then around the Swinging Bridge back to the Lodge and then on back to Curry Village where we had our car parked. There are 12 miles of biking trails around Yosemite Valley and you can rent bikes from Curry Village or Yosemite Lodge.

My son took a panoramic photo of the valley floor with Half Dome in the background and me on my bike. Awesome morning ride and we can hardly wait to go back and do it again this summer.

We are always sad to leave but we made some great memories and I feel great for having accomplished the hike to the top of Vernal Falls.

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Barb — 4 Comments

Waterfall Hike – Early Spring at Eagle Lake

Grabbing the opportunity to take a day hike up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, my husband and I decided to visit Eagle Falls and Eagle Lake in the Desolation Wilderness. The trailhead is about an hour from our home and we couldn’t resist the time out in the sunshine and fresh air.

Hopefully this is the first of many day hikes for the spring and summer seasons.

It is an easy hike to the falls and the water was gushing over the rocks…love the sound of water when I am hiking since it makes me feel cool just hearing it. We crossed the bridge and continued up the mountain. If you look carefully in the top left of the photo you can see the rock staircase leading up to the trail.

The lake is about a mile past the waterfall. The trail is uneven from here on up to the lake and is characterized by large granite steps and slabs as you work your way up. The literature all says this is an “easy” hike but I would say it has sections that are ‘strenuous”. This is all uphill hike to the lake and then all downhill on the way back. There are sections of this trail that are rather muddy from where the streams cross the path.

view of Lake Tahoe from Eagle Lake Trail

The altitude got me on this hike and I found myself a little out of breath from time to time but that gave me an excuse to look around at the scenery and the view of Lake Tahoe in the distance.

We finally made it to Eagle Lake which is a pretty little alpine lake surrounded by mountains and trees. We sat for a long time just enjoying the views and eating a snack before heading back down to the car. I forgot to bring my hat so I was a little red from the sun…and gained about a million freckles.

One last view of the lake before we left…perfect hike on a perfectly spring-like day. The water shimmered like diamonds!

This is Arrowleaf Balsamroot that was in full bloom along the trail and the roads. What a happy flower!

Well, that is a glimpse into our day hike from last week. I hope you get the chance soon to get out into the spring sunshine with your family. Look for an entry this week from our Yosemite National Park visit which included a hike to the top of Vernal Falls and a day biking the valley.

Posted on May 15, 2013 by Barb — Leave a comment

Garden Flowers Focus – Using Notebooking Pages

We have studied many of the garden flowers listed in the Handbook of Nature Study over the years. Using the simple ideas in each lesson make it enjoyable and memorable. For this challenge (Focus on Garden Flowers), we picked just two flowers to study more in-depth- Salvia and Petunias (which will be the star of the next OHC this Friday).

Guess what? We have never had salvia in our garden before so a trip to Home Depot was taken and we found several varieties of salvia to choose from. We picked this purple salvia which we are hoping will apply to the salvia in the Handbook of Nature Study. From the label we learned it needs a sunny spot (6 hours of sun) and water every other day. It blooms summer to fall and will grow to a height of 10-36″.

I decided to plant my saliva in a pot so I won’t forget to water it and so I can watch it grow and blossom and hopefully watch the bees in it. It is a perennial so I will eventually add it to the flower garden.

From the lesson in the Handbook of Nature Study (Lesson 161), we looked closely at the flowers, looking for the corolla-tubes, stamens, and anthers as described in the narrative. The bees apparently have to push their heads agains the inner arms of the stamesn to lift them which causes the anthers to leave a streak of pllen along the bee’s fuzzy sides. The bees then have to crawl almost inside the tubes to get the nectar. I’m not sure that my variety of salvia will provide such a show but we will be watching.

I will be on the lookout for some Saliva as described in the Handbook of Nature Study so we can really get a good look. I printed the salvia notebook page from NotebookingPages.com’s Wildflowers, Weeds, and Garden Flowers set.

While we were at Home Depot, I picked up some more seeds to plant in the garden. They had some larkspur seeds and I will plant those and use along with the lesson in the Handbook of Nature Study, hopefully later this summer. There were two other seeds that caught my eye and I will be planting those today along my fence-line- Hollyhocks and Black-Eyed Susans!

Our garden is all planted and I hope to get a garden entry done sometime in the next week to share all the lovely Renee’s Garden seeds that we have tucked into their garden beds…just waiting!

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Posted on May 13, 2013 by Barb — 8 Comments

Planning a Spring Trip to Yosemite

Spring Trip to Yosemite

Planning a spring trip to Yosemite is always a lot of fun, anticipating the delights waiting inside the national park boundaries. The waterfalls are always at their best in the spring and the valley begins to turn green and lush. On this trip we are staying overnight at Curry Village in the tent cabins...heated and with electricity. We have been to Yosemite in May before and ended up camping in the snow so we opted for a little more comfortable accommodations for our spring trip.

The price is reasonable and we reserved a cabin that includes a buffet breakfast in the room price. I am always hungry at breakfast and with a snack we can make it through to an early dinner (saves money and time). Note the bear locker outside the cabin door. You MUST keep all your food and fragrant items in a bear locker to prevent bear problems within Yosemite National Park.

So what are we planning on doing on this May visit to Yosemite?

Nevada Falls, Yosemite National Park

I am hoping there is no snow and we can hike up to the top of Vernal falls. That is the plan anyway. We are going to try a much longer hike in July and this would be a warm up hike…we may even go up further to the base of Nevada Falls or to the top…depending on weather.

The Pacific Dogwood may be blooming too and that will be another subject that I could study while we are there. This trip is hopefully going to be filled with spring things that are abundant in Yosemite. Even though we have been there many times, we always find something new to learn about.

But, plans are easily changed if something better comes along.

Of course we will share our adventures when we get back.

You can read more about our adventures and hikes in Yosemite on my Yosemite For Families page on Squidoo.

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