For those of you new to this blog, WELCOME! I will be honest that sometimes I feel that the original goal of this blog shifted slightly as we have been quarantined due to COVID19. But in reality, it hasn’t. The primary goal of Kitchen Weekend …
Today, Locryn spotted a common snail in our vegetable garden. To be honest, snails are pretty cool to watch. Slowly and meticulously moving along, they can consume rotting plant material like leaf litter. They are a good food source for snakes, birds, lizards, and mammals. …
Locryn’s biology lesson today was a bit less cheerful than some of our past lessons. Today, he learned about the Southern Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis).
The Kitchen home is surrounded by pine trees. We are blessed with space and few neighbors (the ones we have are wonderful). When you sit outside on a quiet evening, you can hear frogs chirping and owls hooting. Sadly, you can also hear the sound of the Southern Pine Beetles munching.
These tiny beetles are about the size of a grain of rice but cause huge problems. They are an invasive insect native to the Southeastern United States. In order to reproduce, the beetle finds a host pine tree and burrows under the bark. It is here that they feed and lay their eggs. Once the baby beetles hatch, the host tree is dead. The young beetles move on to another tree, continuing the cycle.
These sick/dead trees are highly susceptible to fire and wind. Every morning after a storm with heavy wind, we do a walk about to inspect for damage from any fallen trees. It is guaranteed that at least one pine tree will have fallen. (Side fact: In 1995, South Carolina lost $125 million in timber revenue due to the Pine Beetle.)
Today, Locryn saw one of these fallen trees due to the Southern Pine Beetle. We discussed how a tree’s bark is like a person’s skin. It helps keep the tree cool (or warm), safe from animals and disease, and keep it hydrated. He asked if the tree was sick and if he could help it. As he gave the fallen tree a hug, my heart melted. My husband and I both attempted to explain to him that a beetle had eaten the tree for food. His reply was that the beetle was “NOT NICE!” We agreed.
The lesson continued to reassure him that fallen trees are not always sad. Fallen trees become homes for lichen, moss, fungus, insects, etc! They are also good spots to sit on a long hike or to walk on like a balance beam!
ENJOY!
I am proud to say that our toddler is incredibly observant. He notices if anything is out of place. We took a stroll (him on my back) this afternoon to check on all the plants. As we were walking, he pointed to a spot on …
You cannot be a true outdoorsman/woman without knowing a bit about scat! Besides, what potty training toddler doesn’t want to learn about POOPY! Once Locryn realized what he saw was animal POOPY, his first response was quite normal – YUCKY! He probably didn’t realize that …
Besides the pride of being able to grow your own food (we would love to have our own little Kitchen farm one day), we love teaching our son where his food comes from. Apples are not just bought at the store. They grow on trees at an apple orchard. They are picked, packaged, and shipped to markets and stores all around the country. We go and buy them at the local farmers market or store (Yes. There are many more steps involved, but we are keeping things three year old simple).
Towards the end of February, I gave my son several packets of seeds – bush beans, pole beans, yellow squash, basil, etc. He planted them in little pots to grow in our Sunroom until it was warm enough to plant them outside. I will be completely honest. I have no idea which seed was planted where. Even when we transplanted the seedlings in late March, it was still a bit of a guessing game for some of the plants. But, Locryn’s vegetables were growing!
Since the seedlings were planted, he has gone down to check on them every morning, keep them watered, and tend to the weeds (with Mom’s help). Today, we saw our first baby bush beans (at least I think they are the bush beans!). I wish I could express how excited our toddler was! He planted. He cared for. He grew his own food! Now to hold the excitement back until they are ready to harvest!
Lichens are a truly a unique organism. They are a symbiotic relationship between fungus and algae. The fungus grows on the tree (or rock, wall, etc) and traps moisture which the algae need to survive. The algae photosynthesize and create food which feeds the fungus. …