Jul. 20, 2008

Simple Backyard Nature - Let It Grow!

There's no doubt that everyone loves a neatly trimmed and manicured lawn.  One kept with grass and landscaped with beautiful store bought trees, shrubs and garden flowers.  But have you ever thought about what might grow in your yard if even just a small part is left to itself?

 

 

My husband has a gifted ability to make our landscaping around our home look wonderful, but he's also well aware of letting nature show off it's own landscaping abilities.  All around the bottom edges of our yard, right where our creek is and where it meets the woods, we allow about a 5-6 foot area to "grow wild".  This is where we've been blessed to be able to identify some of the most beautiful plants and wildflowers (see that patch of Black-Eyed Susans in the above photo?  That's where I got the photo for my blog banner!).  We've also observed countless cool-looking insects and have discovered little bird's nests perhaps built by Sparrows who prefer their nests down low to the ground.

 

 

And another thing that is really neat about God's natural landscaping, is that it changes through the days and seasons!  One week we may have Robin's Plantain growing and the next Chicory, it's always giving us a different view.

 

 

Around the base of trees is also a neat place to "let it grow".  There we may find different kinds of wildflowers and insects.  And we keep a few old logs and rocks around the bases of some of our trees just for those instances when we'd like to turn them over!

 

 

Even if your yard space is limited, perhaps you could spare just a very small area to let it grow wild.  Even in a small space, a new world awaits to be discovered!

 

 

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Comments

Jul. 20, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by Dana @ School For Us
How neat! We also had a part of yard growing wild... though it wasn't planned. I'm just not much of a gardner and it went wild. Last weekend, we finally weeded it - the weeds were huge! We found lots of neat bugs... and a moth's cocoon! We brought it in, but after a few days it looked damaged. I'm not sure what happened. Anyway, enjoy your wildness! :-)
Dana, www.alexml.blogspot.com
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Jul. 20, 2008 - Wild yard

Posted by MusingMom
When we first moved into our house, two weeks before ds#1 was born, the back yard was cleared but no yard was put in. It became a wildflower field from where I would take cuttings for decorations with ds#1 in a backpack on my back.

It's all lawn now, with a play set and trampoline. It's great for the kids, but sometimes I miss that wild field.
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Jul. 21, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by blessedwith2angels
I love the "grow wild" space in your yard. When we tried the grow wild space, it was just wild blackberries that we kept stepping on. Ouch!
Pam
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Jul. 21, 2008 - Let it grow, let it grow, let it grow!

Posted by OldSchoolMarm
I simply love the picture of the little nest! Were you ever able to see what kind of bird they were?
I'm thinking of enterring some of my nature photos in our county fair next month. Your photos are definitely
competition worthy.
Thanks for the tip on letting it grow, so much of ours is doing just that :-).
Blessings, Julie
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Jul. 21, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by Lynn
Hello Melissa!
I hope your first day back at school is going well. I prayed for you all first thing this morning (which was probably the middle of the night for you ;)
God bless you all
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About Me

Welcome to our blog home! My name is Melissa and I am a homeschool mom of three beautiful blessings ages 11, 9, and 2; and blessed wife to my husband for 15 years. Our homeschooling style is eclectic, but we love Charlotte Mason's educational philosophies and learning the natural, everyday hands-on life way! We especially see daily opportunities to learn and grow closer to God through His amazing creation in nature!

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"Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young - a place near your altar, O Lord Almighty, my King and my God." ~Psalm 84:3-4


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Nature Notes


  • 9/27/08
    What a beautiful Autumn day. Temperatures in the low 70s and sunny. The leaves are just beginning to change on the trees and the sky is such a beautiful turquoise blue.

  • After a fairly long heat wave, fall is starting to temp us with cool morning temperature that are lasting throughout the day. Highs in the low 70's, great Nature study weather!

    We've been blessed to observe five Southern Two-Lined Salamanders and a Green Frog this week.



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    "The earth has music for those who will listen."
    ~ William Shakespeare


    "I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in."
    ~ George Washington Carver


    "Reading about nature is fine, but if a person walks in the woods and listens carefully, he can learn more than what is in books, for they speak with the voice of God."
    ~ George Washington Carver


    "Nature is painting for us, day after day, pictures of infinite beauty."
    ~John Ruskin


  • Scripture Notes


    For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. ~ Romans 1:20

    But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? ~ Job 12:7-9

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    General Links

    • Home
    • View my profile
    • Archives
    • My Blog's RSS
    • Crosswalk Homeschool Site
    • My Daughter's Blog

    Downloadable Files to Share


    General Files

    • Weekly Chore Checklist-Updated 3/08 (Word)
    •
    Weekly Dinner Menu Planner-Updated 3/08 (Excel)
    •
    Daily Schedule-Updated 4/08 (Word)
    •
    Kid's Chore Cards-Updated 3/08 (Word)
    •
    Food Journal (Excel)
    •
    Education Journal - Blank (Excel)


    Nature Study Files

    •
    Taking Note of Birds List (Excel)
    •
    Birds Notebook Page - UPDATED(Word)
    •
    Northern Cardinal Study Guide (Word)
    •
    Plant Journal (Excel)
    •
    Science Journal (Excel)
    •
    Cloud Identification Sheet (Excel)
    •
    Fire! The Renewal of a Forest - Unit Study (Word)


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    Nature Links

    • Cornell Lab of Ornithology ~ Bird Guide
    •
    What Bird? ~ Bird Guide
    •
    ENature
    •
    National Geographic - Creature Features
    •
    Ruby-Throated Hummingbird Migration Map
    •
    Great Backyard Bird Count - Feb. 2009
    •
    Great American Backyard Campout - June 28, 2008

    Nature Identification Posts

    •
    Nature Identification How-To's
    •
    Wildflower Walks, Identification, and Notebooking
    •
    Take a Wildflower Walk


    Kentucky Nature Identification Websites

    •
    Common Mammals of Kentucky
    •
    Wildflowers of Kentucky
    •
    Trees of Kentucky
    •
    Common Butterflies of Kentucky
    •
    Birds of Kentucky
    •
    Insects and Spiders of Kentucky-under KY Critter Files
    •
    Snakes of Kentucky
    •
    Reptiles of Kentucky
    •
    Frogs and Toads of Kentucky
    •
    Amphibians of Kentucky
    •
    Kentucky's Flora and Fauna

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    Nature Projects We've Done

    • Homemade Hummingbird Nectar
    •
    Homemade Suet
    •
    Bagel Bird Feeders
    •
    Nature Walk: 3-D Nature Scenes
    •
    Nature Prints in Clay
    •
    Nesting Materials Bag
    •
    Nature Walk: Poster Collage
    •
    Rock Painting
    •
    Our Nature Table
    •
    Mushroom Spore Prints
    •
    Woodland Fairy House
    •
    Nature Art ~ Blueberry Painting
    •
    Nature Craft ~ Wind Wands

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    Nature Studies

    • Clouds Unit Study
    •
    Dandy Dandelions Study
    •
    Mushroom Study
    •
    From Eggs, to Tadpoles, to Toads
    •
    Forest Fires Unit Study
    •
    Wind Study

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    Simple Backyard Nature Ideas

    • We Love Mud
    •
    Turn it Over
    •
    Animal Habitats
    •
    Let It Grow
    •
    Can You Hear It?
    •
    Imagination Play

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    Art and Music

    • Picture Study - Creative Writing Activity
    •
    Nature Walk, 5 Elements of Shape, Vivaldi
    •
    Monet Impressionism ~ Vivaldi
    •
    Watercolor Project ~ Vivaldi
    •
    Mary Cassatt ~ Tempera Monoprint
    •
    Nature's Paintbox: Autumn Tempera Paints
    ~ Poetry and Vivaldi

    •
    Nature's Paintbox: Summer Watercolors
    ~ O'Keeffe and Vivaldi

    •
    Nature's Painbox: Spring Pastels ~ Stravinsky

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    Our Educational Philosophy

    "Education is an Atmosphere, a Discipline, a Life."
    ~ Charlotte Mason


    • Who Was Charlotte Mason?
    •
    Summaries of "The Original Homeschooling Series"
    •
    Why Homeschoolers are Turning to a Charlotte Mason Education
    •
    Simply Charlotte Mason

    Nature Study is Education!

    •
    Precious Moments in God's Creation
    •
    Can Nature Teach?
    •
    Carving Out Time for Nature Study

    Quotable
    "Years hence, when the children are old enough to understand that science itself is in a sense sacred and demands some sacrifices, all the 'common information' they have been gathering until then, and the habits of observation they have acquired, will form a capital groundwork for a scientific education. In the mean- time, let them consider the lilies of the field and the fowls of the air." --Charlotte Mason, Vol.1, p. 63


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    Textbook Curriculum We Currently Use

    • Teaching Textbooks Math
    •
    Primary Language Lessons"
    •
    Intermediate Language Lessons
    •
    The Write Stuff Adventure
    •
    Mystery of History

    How Else Are We Loving Learning?

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    Arts and Music
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    Outdoor Hour Challenges
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    Hands On Learning
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    Natural Learning
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    Nature Study
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    Science Experiments
    •
    Dictation
    •
    Clouds Unit Study
    •
    Dandy Dandelions Study
    •
    Gardening
    •
    Mushroom Study
    •
    Teaching with Nature ~ Math
    •
    From Eggs, to Tadpoles, to Toads
    •
    Forest Fires Unit Study
    •
    Wind Study

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    Categories

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    Awards
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    Simple Backyard Nature
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    Wildflowers
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    Wind Study

    Nature Books We Enjoy


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    Handbook of Nature Study
    by Anna Botsford Comstock

    *free download

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    Pocketful of Pinecones
    by Karen Andreola


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    The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady
    by Edith Holden


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    Nature in a Nutshell for Kids
    by Jean Potter


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    Girls Who Looked Under Rocks
    by Jeannine Atkins


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    i love dirt!
    by Jennifer Ward


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    Nature's Playground
    by Fiona Danks and Jo Schofield


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    The Burgess Bird Book for Children
    by Thorton W. Burgess


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