PLAYING WITH POKEWEED

Do you have Pokeweed growing at your house? 


 The plant is poisonous to humans, from its roots to the leaves and berries.
Did you know it is only in the very early spring, that the very young shoots are edible? 
But you need to know exactly where the pokeweed grew to be able to identify the new growth. You will notice the hollow dried stalks turned white and bent over from the winter and the new shoots will be emerging right there. If you are not 100% sure, never never eat it.

We love watching the transformation of this perennial plant. It can reach 10 feet tall and leaves can be 12 inches long. The stems starts out green and turns a gorgeous magenta color, 
The berry cluster starts as white flowers then green to dark purple berries.

Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana)

Even though the plant is poisonous, with awareness and caution, children CAN come in contact with this plant. Tell them all about the plant and why they shouldn't touch it. When children know the reasons why, it all makes sense to them.

Pokeweed is a value to wildlife and quite attractive in the landscape. It would be a shame to rip it out in fear of its poisonous aspect. 

Pokeweed berries are an important food source for wild life. American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, Mourning Dove, Gray Catbird, Eastern Bluebird, Northern Cardinal, Great-crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Eastern Phoebe, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, European Starling, Brown Thrasher, Cedar Waxwing, Red Fox, Virginia Opossum, Raccoon, and White-footed Mouse all eat the berries.

We drew the plant in our nature journals. It was fun coloring the bright colors of the stems and leaves.


Then . . .we donned disposable gloves, picked the leaves, scrunched them and made designs on paper. The berries were the best part, we squished them and drew with them noticing which berries made the brightest color.

                    

Some other fun activities with Pokeweed: 

• make dye from the berries and dye wool roving, yarn or muslin
• make ink from the dye and write with a quill pen. It is said they wrote the Declaration of Independence with Pokeweed ink. 

happy day!

NATURE JOURNALING . . .

It isn't about being an artist.

It is about connecting with the natural world.

 It is drawing what you see.

 It is using all your senses to create.

 It is finding peace, appreciation . . . 

and amazement . . . in the simple.

It is a record of your journey.

 How do you do it?
It's simple and easy.
Gather a sketchbook, a pencil or gel pen, colored pencils, and a magnifying glass.
You might want watercolors, a brush and water too.

Then go outdoors, find something that catches your eye, and start. Don't be afraid of the blank page. 


                            Just draw what you see.

happy day!


Linked to Barn Hop #12 at Homestead Revival

NATURE JOURNALS

We went on an evergreen search, looking for different textures, sizes and shapes to draw in our nature journals.

We brought our finds inside, looked them over with magnifying glasses, and used our field guides to identify them.

It's not often we journal as a group in Winter. This winter was cold, and especially snowy, and journals tend to get wet, pencils fall in the snow, and it's hard to draw with bulky mittens and gloves on. 


And the most important thing is to enjoy being in nature, so one will want more and more and more. That's why we do most of our drawing inside in the cold, wet months. 


We bring nature IN. And save the outside time to explore and play, especially in the snow.

It is fun to draw in each season and discover the gifts each season offers us.

The more one journals what they see, the more detailed the drawings become. Observational skills are sharpened.

Spelling isn't our focus, yet we do make corrections so the names are accurate.

It won't be long before we can draw wildflowers and buds unfurling on the trees! 

happy day!

SCULPTING IN SNOW . and a Nature Book GIVEAWAY!

An abundance of wet snow is the perfect medium for SCULPTING!

Dressing in layers and armed with a garden shovel and wooden spoon, my "sweet birdie" came into fruition. And how appropriate that she keep watch over our Bird Haven.

Noone was available to join in the sculpting, but that didn't stop me. The child within took over and I was having so much fun. WE need as much creative play as the children!

After shoveling off the branches and bird feeders, I stood back and looked at the pile of snow and thought of the sweet Mourning doves out the kitchen window this morning waiting for sunflower seeds to drop from the birdfeeder. (They are ground feeders!)

They were my inspiration for the snow sculpture.

Notice how they puff their tummy, I mean their feathers? That's how they keep warm.

Air is an insulator, and the air that is trapped in the puffed up feathers of the bird is warmed by the birds own body heat and stays trapped close to the birds skin.

Had I glanced at a picture of the Mourning dove before sculpting, I would have made longer tail feathers, but this is my rendition and exactness and perfection do not matter. It's the process of creating and being in the elements and breathing in the fresh cold air that matters.

I carved out a small hideaway in front of the sculpture, just enough for a bird to get respite from the wind and partake of birdseed.

It wasn't long before the birds came, as soon as I got out of their way.

If you want YOUR sculpture to be included in my SNOW SCULPTURE SHOWCASE , an upcoming blog post: 

1) Go outside and create a snow sculpture. . .with or without your children

2) Take a picture of it 

3) Post it on your blog and send me the link to your blog picture in the comments.

                OR

4) If you don't have a blog, just email me the picture and I will include it .

THE GIVEWAY ( it has nothing to do with the snow sculpture)

In light of being passionate about connecting people with our earth and being in tune with Nature, and that my blog has reached 100 followers; followers who I am grateful for and with hope that I have inspired in some small way, I am offering up one of my favorite books. . . AND a sketchpad and drawing pens so you can get started drawing right away :) 

This book is full to the brim with inspiration and the know how to connect with nature by drawing what you see.  What better way to start your new year than beginning a nature journal recording the natural world around you. 

Start a nature journal yourself, encourage your children, or do one together! You will see an even deeper connection to our earth.

To enter the giveway, please 

1) LEAVE A COMMENT - why you are interested in the book.

2) FOLLOW this blog ( link on right sidebar)

The winner will be drawn next Thursday, January 20th.

happy day, happy snow!

OUR NATURE GAME

It is a game to me, and one I like to pass on to the children, to become more knowledgeable about the plant and tree life around us, especially the ones we come in contact on a daily or weekly basis.  


As time goes on, it is no longer called a tree but becomes a Shagbark Hickory, a Grey Birch or a Red Oak . . .  not a shrub but a Winterberry, Serviceberry, or Forsytheia. You get the picture. 


The game:
~ Choose something in our natural world that we have exposure to.
~ How many of its kind can we discover as we explore?
 ~How can we describe it? Let's observe up close and use magnifying glasses and all our senses.
~ How can we draw it? Let's just draw what we see.  
~ How can we make something with it or incorporate it into our play?


This is not a game with rigid rules with a *you have to do this* kind of thing. This is just how it has come to be and it flows.


You might think this is not a game, not a fun game. Ahh but it is. The children have exposure to nature in the real world and they want to know more. It has meaning to them because all of it is part of their world. They can see, touch, hear and smell all the wonder around them.


We played a cattail game recently. We have seen them in each season, from the young new green growth which is spread in the damp soil by rhizomes, 

to the fluffy cotton the catttail turns into in order to disperse of its seeds.    

                  
First we discover all the places we find them . . . 


                                        in the pond

in the marshy earth

                        Then we look and touch and observe from all angles, using all of our senses.

And we draw what we see. You might see something different than me.

and we color in and make it our own.

 We learned that the cattail leaves are used to make woven chair seats and backs and also as rugs and mats.  The children collected some leaves and realized just how long they are.

They braided them . . . 

and made headbands, 

necklaces . . . 

and bracelets.

When we have a personal connection to something in nature, we want to know more and more and more. It has meaning for us. It is only then that we delve deeper, to learn even more about our *nature finds* in our game.


Perhaps you would enjoy this game at your house  :)


                                      happy day!