May Kids’ Corner
from the Gale River Cooperative Preschool
the power of flowers
Painted Trillium
The April showers did indeed bring May flowers and they are popping up all over the forest floor! Flowers are the part of the plant that, when pollinated, produces seeds. In the center of the flower is a pistil, and around it are the stamen. The stamen produce pollen and when pollinators travel from flower to flower collecting it, they move it to the pistils in other flowers. This pollinates them! They can produce a seed, or fruit with seeds inside, and create more plants. The flower has an important job, it has to attract pollinators. What we see as a beautiful and nice smelling flower, the pollinators see as a great source of food and are drawn in. As you explore the forest, keep your eyes peeled for some common types of flowers. Painted trillium (pictured to the right) and red trillium as well as canada mayflower, bunchberry, lady’s slipper, blue bead lily and trout lily (pictured below) are all common in the northern forest. When exploring for wildflowers, please leave them where they are. While the desire to pick them is understandably strong, wildflowers belong in their natural habitat and have an important job to do. They have a valuable role in the ecosystem. However, some local farmers grow flowers for sale and we encourage you to check them out for your fresh cut flower needs!
Trout Lily poking through the leaves
Want tips on how to explore wildflowers this May?
Use iNaturalist! Ask an adult to download the app iNaturalist so you can take pictures of flowers you find and upload them to the app. iNaturalist is a citizen science platform where people can upload pictures of what they find and get a suggested identification. Then, other users will confirm or suggest a different identification until it is deemed research grade. Scientists can then use the photographic data in their research! Phenological data, or data about when plants are budding, flowering, fruiting, etc, is very valuable for research on the impact of climate change on flowering plants.
Pick a route to walk every few days and see how the flowers change. Monitoring the same spot or having a regular route will help you stay aware of the changes happening in the natural world. In spring they go quickly, so keep a close eye out.
Interested in wildflower activities and crafts? We’ve got you covered!
Wildflower watercolors! Wildflowers come in so many shapes and sizes, they’re beautiful to capture in watercolor. Take a picture of one you find or open up a guide book. Use a black marker or sharpie to draw the outline of the flower then fill in the beautiful colors you see.
Tissue paper flowers! Making tissue paper flowers can be done in a few ways. The first option is to use pipe cleaners. Push layers of squares onto the tip of a pipe cleaner to create the many layers of petals. These can be stuck into floral foam blocks to create your own flower garden. The second option is to draw the stems and leaves on paper, then glue on scrunched up tissue paper to create the flower
Thanks to our partner, the Gale River Cooperative Preschool in Bethlehem, for helping our area parents get kiddos outside for fun no matter the time of year.
We can't wait to share the family fun we're planning with you. Keep an eye out in the coming months for announcements.
