| Plants
and Trees |
Aggie
Horticulture Texas A&M: Vegetable Gardening In Containers
Container gardens are perfect for small spots such as patios, window
sills, balconies or doorsteps. They also sidestep problems related
to poor soil conditions and soil-borne diseases. "Vegetables
which are ideally suited for growing in containers include tomatoes,
peppers, eggplant, green onions, beans, lettuce, squash, radishes
and parsley." This single-page site from Texas A&M covers
the how-to gamut including synthetic soils, containers, seeding, transplanting,
watering, light and controlling diseases and insects.
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/container/container.html
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Arbor
Day Crafts
From things you probably already have around the
house (such as construction paper and egg cartons) Enchanted Learning
creates seven tree-related craft projects. The colorfully illustrated
step-by-step instructions are great for preschoolers and lower elementary
grades. Looking past Arbor Day, these crafts will also be fun around
Thanksgiving (see the string of leaves) and Christmas (especially the
paper evergreen tree, and the pop-up tree greeting card.)
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/arborday/
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Arbor
Day Net
Arbor Day Net tells the history of Arbor Day,
from 1872 Nebraska to President Nixon's 1970 creation of National Arbor
Day. Nebraska's first Arbor Day, proposed by state agriculture
board member J. Sterling Morton, was an amazing success -- more
than one million trees were planted. So when Nebraska made Arbor
Day an official state holiday in 1885, they chose to honor Morton by
celebrating it on his birthday , April 22nd. Arbor Day (or some
variation) is celebrated in many countries around the world, including
Australia, Japan, Korea and Israel.
http://www.arbor-day.net/
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American Forests
American Forests is the nation's oldest nonprofit
citizen conservation organization, founded in 1875. Our vigorous advocacy
helped create the conservation movement and the National Park and National
Forest systems in the U.S. American Forests plants millions of trees
each year through our Global ReLeaf program and advocates the benefits
of both rural and urban trees, good science, and sound policy.
http://www.americanforests.org
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Birch
Trees
Long before the arrival of Europeans and even before the development
of ceramics, bark containers were used to collect, store, cook and consume
food or other products.
http://ftnelson.sd81.bc.ca/~fnap/trees/treesbirch2.html
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Cedar,
The Great Provider
Scientists call it Thuja plicata or Western
Red Cedar. The Nuu-chah-nulth call it humis, the Haida name is tsu and
the Ktunaxa word for it is ?i¢nat.
http://www.rbcm.gov.bc.ca/notes/cedar.html
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The
Cherokee Rose
The above photograph shows three stages in the
flowering of a Cherokee Rose. At left center is an unopened bud; at
top is a recently opened bloom; and at bottom is a mature bloom.
The Cherokee Rose became Georgia's official state "floral emblem"
by virtue of a joint resolution of the General Assembly approved by
Gov. Nathaniel Harris on Aug. 18, 1916.
http://www.cviog.uga.edu/Projects/gainfo/cherokeerose.htm
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ENature-Wildflowers
This virtual field guide to plants and animals has an extensive listing
of all kinds of plants. This particular link takes you to wild flowers,
which are categorized by very visual descriptions so that even younger
children can make use of the site: simple shapes, odd shapes, dandelion-like
flowers, rounded clusters and seeds and fruits to name a few. You can
even view the entire category. The clickable photographs are clear and
colorful and the resulting pages are chocked full of information. Your
students can even send an e-card of the flower they've studied!
http://www.enature.com/guides/select_Wildflowers.asp?curGroup=Wildflowers
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Fruit
& Vegetable Encyclopedia
Looking for detailed information on fruits and
vegetables? Here is where you’ll find it!
http://www.dole5aday.com/ReferenceCenter/R_Home.html
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Kiddie
Gardens: Growing Vegetables
"Vegetables are actually some of the easiest plants to grow,
especially from seed. To encourage your child's enthusiasm, let them
choose from the easy vegetables to grow list and you will both be
delighted with the results." Kiddie Gardens is chock full of
advice on what to plant, how to plant and why to plant. The long list
of benefits of growing your own vegetables includes value for your
money, being assured of freshness, eating organic, and teaching your
children a valuable life skill.
http://www.kiddiegardens.com/growing_vegetables.html
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Kids'
Valley Garden: Veggies
"Vegetables are one of the most rewarding things to grow in a
garden because you get to enjoy the end result of your hard work by
eating it!" Kids' Valley Garden provides kid-friendly instructions
for growing seven common vegetables: beans, carrots, corn, cucumbers,
peanuts, potatoes, and tomatoes. "Read the directions for each
vegetable carefully to get the maximum yield from each plant and watch
over them for signs of disease or bugs."
http://www.copper-tree.ca/garden/veggies.html
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Kids
for Trees
"Trees don't just stand around. They do many jobs
that are very important to animals, people, and the environment." This
illustrated, eleven-page guide for K- 3 students was created
by The Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Best clicks are the
glossary (from "Arbor Day" to "zoologist"), and the teacher guide, which
includes ideas for projects and activities. The site is also available
in Spanish. To find it, click on "Other Classroom Materials" and follow
the link to "Wild About Plants."
http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/chf/pub/tree_kit/
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Kudzu
Facts
Kudzu is a perennial, trailing or climbing vine of the legume family.
Dark green leaves, starchy fibrous roots, and elongated purple flowers
with a fragrance reminiscent of grapes readily identify this aggressive
vine.
http://www.vnps.org/invasive/invpuer.htm
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Kudzu
in Alabama
Almost anyone living in a rural area of Alabama knows what kudzu is
and that it is a pest. Kudzu in Alabama has also been called "porch
vine," "telephone vine," and "wonder vine"
It is only the visitor or tourist who asks the name of the aggressive
and highly visible green vine.
http://www.aces.edu/department/ipm/kudzu.htm
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Maize Page
Columbus did not realize that the gift of maize was far more valuable
than the spices or gold he hoped to find. He had no way of knowing that
the history of maize traced back some 8,000 years or that it represented
the most remarkable plant breeding accomplishment of all time.
http://maize.agron.iastate.edu/
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The
Miracle of Fall
A directory of links to information about fall
foliage and related topics. Includes links to sites about fall color,
trees, fall foliage updates and reports, driving and hiking suggestions,
photos, lesson plans, activities, autumn gardening and composting, and
more. From the University of Illinois Extension.
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/fallcolor/
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No
Dig Vegetable Garden: Gardening for Kids
A no dig garden is one that is planted in a raised bed created with
layers of organic material such as compost, fertilizer, straw, hay
and newspaper. "Building a no dig garden is a particularly good
gardening for kids project because the garden can be built and planted
in just a couple of hours." And for something edible in just
a few days, try starting with bean shoots, alfalfa, cress or snow
pea seeds. "Put the seeds into a clean, wide mouth jar and place
a mesh material over the mouth. It must be a material that water and
air can pass through, but not the seeds."
http://www.no-dig-vegetablegarden.com/gardening-for-kids.html
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Pumpkin
Nook:
Did you know?! Pumpkin not only tastes good, it
is good for you. Pumpkin is high in Vitamin A (beta carotene) and high
in dietary fiber. As the weather warms up, remember to choose Pumpkin
Ice Cream.
http://www.pumpkinnook.com/
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Trees
are Terrific... Travels with Pierre site from the University of Illinois
extension.
It is a rather long presentation for young children
under five years old. Suggestion: Bookmark and Show portions of
it in different activities. For example: Show the pages that deal with
the shapes of trees before the craft presentation.
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/trees1/index.html
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Trees Forever
Trees Forever promotes environmental awareness
through the planting of trees. To learn more about "Trees Forever"
visit their website
http://www.treesforever.org/
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University
of Illinois Extension: Vegetable Gardening Basics
"All gardens have problems. One year it may be insects and disease
and the next year it may be a drought. Gardening does require work,
but by learning a few basic skills and techniques, you can make your
vegetable gardening experience a pleasant one." And this University
of Illinois Extension site is a terrific spot to learn those basics.
It covers topics such as location, basic tools, soil prep, and planning
tips. It also includes an illustrated Vegetable Directory and a glossary
of gardening terms from "acidity" to "zucchini."
http://urbanext.illinois.edu/veggies/basics.html
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