Outdoor learning resources – Plant hunt
Now that spring has arrived it gives us an opportunity to watch the plants wake up from their dormancy in winter.
Todays challenge is to go on a plant hunt.
Take the time to walk around your garden and see what plants are just starting to sprout or open their leaves.
You can undertake some citizen science looking for bud burst in trees. This tells scientists when the plants think the start of spring is and see how it changes over the years. This is called Phenology and people have been undertaking surveys like this for hundreds of years, so you can help and become a citizen scientist!
Have a look at the woodland thrust web page to see what data they want you to collect https://naturescalendar.woodlandtrust.org.uk
Bud burst is happening right now in your garden so take a look at which trees are waking up first.
There is a saying – Ash before Oak summer a soak, Oak before ash summer a splash.
This means that if the Ash trees burst their buds before the Oak then it is going to be a wet summer but if the Oak bursts first then it is going to be a dry summer.
If you have those trees near you then why not track their progress and see if the saying is right.
If you haven’t got any tress then you can always survey what spring plants you have.
Why not draw some pictures or take some photos and create a fact file about a spring flower you have found. There is a template to help you.
Don’t forget to Tweet your photos on Twitter #Naturedays or comment on the Nature Days facebook page.
