Explore Outdoors ~ Ice Needles

 

It pays to look at the ground when you're walking. You might find a shiny coin, or - as in this case - some interesting crystals. One icy day in mid-December I was walking through the woods here in upstate NY and I saw thick, icy crystals pushing up through the moss-covered soil. I was taken by the way they curled, and their seeming fragility - though they'd have to be pretty strong to push through the moss!

Turns out they are ice needles, or "needle ice" -  something that naturally occurs when soil temperatures stay above freezing while air temperatures fall below 32 degrees F. Each needle is thin, but they stick together when they get into the frigid air.

What interesting things have you noticed this week?

For Plants It's All About The Soil

 

 The Soil in Jackie’s Garden
by Peggy Thomas; illus. by Neely Daggett
32 pages; ages 5-8
‎Feeding Minds Press, 2024

theme: gardening, compost, pollinators

This is the soil in Jackie’s garden.

For those of us who garden, everything begins with the soil. And so it is with this book. Even before seeds can grow, we have soil. And worms. In this cumulative story, Jackie and her friends sow seeds, nurture plants, harvest fruit, and recycle scraps in the compost bin to ensure that the cycle of growth continues.  

What I like about this book: With it’s “house that Jack built” structure, this story is fun to read and will have kids repeating some lines before long. In addition to the story, Peggy Thomas tucks extra information into text boxes: explanations of xylem and phloem, a closer look at root tips and leaves, how plants breathe. Readers will see the garden through seasons of growth, ripening, and harvest. And then there are the close-ups of compost critters – one of my favorite spreads. Back matter contains more information about the soil cycle. 

While I love books that include the occasional vertical spread, I found that having an entire book open that way was difficult for me to hold on my lap. But if you’ve got kids who lay on their tummies to look at books, this format makes perfect sense!

Beyond the Books:

Watch how a seed grows. You’ll need bean or pumpkin seeds, a clear glass jar or plastic cup, paper towels, and an old t-shirt. You can find instructions under “Watch pumpkin seeds sprout” at Patricia Newman’s lit links.

Make some compost. But if you don’t have room to build a compost pile in your yard, you can make compost in a plastic soda bottle. Here’s how. When I did it I used newspapers, banana peels, apple cores, orange peels, egg shells, carrot peelings, and dried leaves.

Plant a bucket garden for pollinators. I use five-gallon buckets, but you can use smaller containers – even a plastic waste basket will work. You’ll need to drill some holes in the bottom for drainage and fill with potting soil. Here’s how to create a $5 bee garden.

Today we’re joining Perfect Picture Book Friday. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Hugh knows what to do....

Erosion: How Hugh Bennett Saved America's Soil and Ended the Dust Bowl 
by Darcy Pattison; illus. by Peter Willis
34 pages; ages 6 - 12
Mims House, June 2020

"Earth is a rock with a thin covering of soil. Once, people thought that the soil, or dirt, would be there forever," writes Darcy Pattison.

But in the 1930s, dust storms threatened to destroy America’s farms. The wind whipped soil away from fields, carrying it in thick, dark clouds from farmland into cities – even Washington DC. But Hugh Bennett knew how to save cropland, and he began teaching farmers about contour plowing and other soil conservation techniques.

What I like about this book: I like the fun internal rhyme of “Hugh knew what to do.” And the fight to pass a law creating the Soil Conservation Service. Too often we forget that soil is alive, and an integral part of our food production. Darcy includes back matter, too, with a story about the power of a water drip.

I emailed Darcy last week and she had time to answer One Question

Archimedes: Is there a take-away from Bennett's work that we can apply to current agricultural or environmental problems?

Darcy: Bennett was a man who deeply understood the earth, soil, agriculture, water and how everything is interconnected. Our situation today would be familiar to him. For example, across the globe, we have a major shift of water resulting in shortages and droughts in some areas, mixed with larger storms and floods in other areas. We need balance, and that only comes from looking at our environment globally as Bennett did. We need to listen to the scientists, who like Bennett, know what to do. We need to let them take action.

Bennett also knew how to step into a disaster and bring back balance, starting small. His team set up small projects, and within a couple years, they brought back farmlands from disaster. When I look at our mounting problems, he gives me hope. Hope that even small efforts matter, and hope that balance can be restored.

Darcy is a member of #STEAMTeam2020. You can find out more about her and the books she writes at her website. Review copy provided by the publisher.