Watermelon

This is a picture of a watermelon plant I grew in my garden.

It was only about an inch tall when I bought it.

"The crops of the family prefer hot and humid weather as is found in the southern United States to dryer climates. The Cucurbitacea family contains many species and varieties of zucchini, squash, and pumpkins, cucumbers, and many other melons such as muskmelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew besides the hundreds of watermelon varieties available. So many varieties are available because of the ability of the cucurbits to cross-pollinate within the same species. "

Quotes from http://www.uga.edu/vegetable/watermelon.html

http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/watermelon1.html

Emma

Robin Eggs

Robin eggs are soft and smooth. You must be careful not to break them. I found them in the neighbour's yard, when I was looking for rabbits.

http://www.wbu.com/chipperwoods/photos/robin.htm

http://www.backyardwildlifehabitat.info/robinstory.htm (This one tells the story of some eggs, from being first laid to getting ready to fly.)

http://www.learner.org/jnorth/tm/robin/EggstraEggstra.html

Anna

Yellow Squash

"Squash is ready to start picking 50-55 days after planting or about one week after the flower sets fruit. You will need to harvest every other day as squash matures very fast. Pick when tender. Elongated types such as yellow and zucchini pick when they are not more than 6-8 inches long. Over mature fruit deepens in color and develops ridges. Scallop or patty pan types should be harvested when they are 3-4 inches in diameter. Do not leave overly mature squash on the vine as it will literally shut the plant down"


Quotes from http://www.hffinc.com/Squash.htm


"Summer squashes, including young vegetable marrows (such as zucchini ) [also known as courgette], pattypan, and yellow crookneck) are harvested during the growing season, while the skin is still tender and the fruit relatively small, they are consumed almost immediately and require little or no cooking.

In addition to the fruit, other parts of the plant are edible. Squash seeds can be eaten directly, ground into paste, or (particularly for pumpkins) pressed for vegetable oil. The shoots, leaves, and tendrills can be eaten as greens. The blossoms are an important part of native American cooking and are also used in many other parts of the world.

Though considered a vegetable in cooking, botanically speaking, squash is a fruit (being the receptacle for the plant's seeds), and not a vegetable "

Quotes from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squash_(plant)


"Summer Squash
Harvested during the summer, these squashes (pattypan, yellow crookneck, zucchini) have tender skins and the fruit is relatively small. These squash are consumed almost immediately and require little to no cooking.
Summer Squash:~Wash summer squash only just before use~~Summer squash can be grilled, steamed, boiled, sautéed, fried, or used in stir fry recipes~~Excellent served raw in salads or on crudités


Yellow Squash - range from a bright yellow to a deep golden yellow. The shape is like a crooked vase. The flesh is whitish-pale green with edible seeds."


Quotes from http://www.cambridgeculinary.com/squash.aspx



Summer squash is good
All the other kinds are, too
Squish, squash, squoosh, and squesh.

Emma

Day Lily / Tiger Lily

The day lily is a very beautiful flower. It does not mind crowds of day lilies. The day lily can live in ditches, or in your flower garden. But slugs and snails can hurt it. It requires soft, good soil, and does not need plant food.
http://www.gardenersnet.com/bulbs/tigerlily.htm

http://www.backyardnature.net/fl_dayli.htm

Anna

Canna Lily

Canna lily, just beginning to bloom.

"The seeds are used as beads in jewelry."

"All of the plant has commercial value, rhizomes for starch (consumption by humans and livestock), stems and foliage for animal fodder, young shoots as a vegetable and young seeds as an addition to tortillas."

"Cannas are used to extract many undesirable pollutants in a wetland environment as they have a high tolerance to contaminants." (Quotes from Wikipedia)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canna_%28plant%29

http://www.catnapin.com/WildWeeds/Flowers-multi/mmCannaLily.htm

http://waynesword.palomar.edu/pljune98.htm

And here is some lovely jewelry made using the seeds...

http://www.alohaainajewelry.com/jewelry/Whaletails_Shell/WTBlueCanna/WTBlueCannahtml.html

Emma

Nature Study Notebook Blog

We've done nature study notebooks before, and I thought this would be an interesting change.

Taking pictures of *nature* and posting them online with information from the internet.

*Hopefully* going for 365 days a year.........we'll see if we can keep up with that. lol

Since I know no one's going to be reading this just for my vast wisdom...how about some nature study links?

http://www.enature.com/home/

http://www.homeschoollearning.com/units/unit_09-21-01.shtml

http://www.squidoo.com/cmnaturestudy

http://www.backyardnature.net/nsop/welcome.htm

http://www.naturedetectives.org.uk/find/index.htm

http://www.realtimerendering.com/flowers/flowers.html

http://identify.whatbird.com/mwg/_/0/attrs.aspx

http://www.amentsoc.org/insects/what-bug-is-this/

http://www.oplin.org/tree/index.html

Mom