Following our lovely activity with leaf printing we decided it would be good to use the baby pumpkins, that Georgia kindly brought in, to make pictures.
Tracie set the activity up and the children loved it so much they wanted to print on other materials. When we had finished, Leo asked if we could make other pumpkin pictures. Emma helped the children make a display for our wall.
In August the Wildlife Rangers asked if they could keep some caterpillars they had found. We talked about what they would need for a habitat and that we had to look after them and once they had turned into butterflies we had to let them free.
The first thing the Wildlife Rangers did was look on the internet to how to make the best habitat for the critters, to keep them safe and well. Tracie found a fish tank in the shed which the Rangers cleaned to make into a little habitat.
The Rangers put some gravel, soil and plants into the tank to provide the caterpillars with food. They used an old lid from a coffee jar and filled with water for them to drink.
The caterpillars seemed happy munching away for a few days. The Rangers kept checking the tank every day, they showed the younger Wanderers and Seedlings the tank and told them all about the facts they had found out about the mini beasts.
One day, when the Wildlife Rangers checked on the caterpillars they said they had all gone and asked me if I had let them go? I asked the children to go back and take a good look in the tank. They were delighted to find they had changed into chrysalises. The children kept an eye on the chrysalises every day. In September, the Rangers found one had hatched into a White Butterfly. They were all delighted. Within the week all the butterflies had hatched and were flying around. We decided it was time to set them free.
Everyone watched as Tracie opened the lid. What happened next we did not imagine, they flew out onto Tracie then flew off on their travels!
Today Ivor, Martha and Tracie went on a vegetable hunt to see what they could make for tea. Ivor and Martha both found some onions to pull out and then Ivor found some of the rainbow carrots were ready to munch on.
They didn’t quite make the kitchen because we washed them with the outdoor tap and ate them all up! Martha said they were very crunchy and juicy. Ivor had too much in his mouth to answer.
As it was lovely and warm, we all spent the day outside. We looked around the garden and took photos of our favourite flowers of the week.
We noticed that there were hundreds of caterpillars on our leaves. Unfortunately they had eaten all of our cabbages and nasturtiums. Tracie was not happy.
Martha was brave and handled the caterpillars but Ivor screamed when he went to touch one! hahah Poppy and Chloe made a caterpillar home so they could study them and see what happens while they are in there! Watch this space…
We had so much fun in the park today. Chloe was supportive and encouraged Poppy to climb high. When it got to Chloe’s turn she wouldn’t do it, which was strange because Chloe loves climbing!
Climbing the tree gave Poppy lots of confidence and she said she’d like to do more climbing, maybe even go with Chloe to The Climbing Hangar next time!
This summer the children have been helping us make mini pond habitats around the garden. Our tadpoles have turned into amazing frogs and we keep finding them hopping around the garden in various places trying to get away from our cats.
We decided to make four mini hiding pools for them between the two main ponds. Hopefully they will use them to jump in and hide while going from one pond to the other to see their friends and family.
This cute little cauliflower has been grown from seed by Chloe. Chloe loves to help us in the garden and best of all, she loves looking for all the wonderful insects and making them a home.
I have set Chloe a challenge this summer, to try the cauliflower when it’s ready!
This year Niamh won the fastest growing sunflower challenge. It has bloomed just in time for her 2nd birthday!
During the lockdown, the key worker children have been working extra hard helping Tracie in the garden.
We have grown Beetroot, Cucumbers, Chillies, Mange-tout, Peppers, Tomatoes, Pumpkins, Lettuce, Onions, Cauliflowers, Cabbage, Peas, Garlic, Turmeric, Ginger, Strawberries, Raspberries, Currents, Apples, Cherries, Kiwi and lots of different herbs.
Our new vegetable this year is Cucamelons. These are a cute, little fruit with bags of personality. Originating from Mexico, Cucamelons produce lots of fruit throughout the Summer that taste like cucumber and lime. They are grape size, look like baby watermelons and are supposed to be easy to grow. Watch this space for updates on how we get on growing them.
A few weeks ago, we posted about our two cherries the boys had found growing nicely on our Cherry tree. Today Poppy decided it was time to pick them!
She had found three all together and said as she had picked them its one for me and two for her! What a little madam!! They were quite sour so Tracie was pleased she only got one in the end! Lets hope next year we get more and they are sweeter!
Tracie's Treasures 