by Winding Pathways | Jul 14, 2014 | Children/Play, Nature, Wonderment
Kids love huts. Often they’ll spend hours scouring the neighborhood for enough sticks to build one and spend hours inside a hut’s comfortable embrace reading, texting, or just enjoying its privacy.
Temporary huts are easy for a child and parent to build and take down. They are a sure way to encourage kids to spend more time outdoors. Our two children enjoyed many types of huts over the years. Here are some simple hut making suggestions:
A LEAN TO: Making a Lean to is as simple as it sounds. Simply gather sticks three or four feet long and lean them at an angle against a wall, tree, fence or even picnic table. The hut won’t be water tight and will have lots of gaps between sticks, but kids love them. When it’s time to take the hut down the sticks make outstanding wood for a simple backyard camp fire.
A TARP TENT: Hardware stores sell blue or green tarps for a few bucks. Buy one at least six by eight feet. Stretch a rope about three feet above the ground horizontally between two trees, yard furniture, a fence or anything else convenient. Drape the tarp over the rope. Tie short pieces of rope to the corner grommets and pull the tarp until it forms a triangle. Tie the rope off to a bush, fence or yard chair. Anything handy will do. If there’s nothing convenient drive a section of stick into the ground and tie the tent to this peg. That’s it. The hut is ready.
A tarp tent will even shed rain, so kids can enjoy being outdoors during showers.
Even the tarp isn’t absolutely necessary. An old blanket or sheet will work fine but they are harder to attach to the ropes and won’t shed rain. A grommet substitute is to put a small stone an inch in from the corner, shape the fabric around it, and tie it off with a short section of rope. This end of the rope will hold the fabric. The other is attached to a peg or something in the yard.
A CARDBOARD BOX. A big cardboard box also makes a great, if very temporary, hut. Just use a knife to cut a door in the side. Kids play for hours in these make shift structures.
by Winding Pathways | Jul 14, 2014 | Birds, Nature
September is the best time of year to observe one of nature’s most amazing animals. It’s hummer month!
Although several hummingbird species live in the southwest, only the Ruby Throated lives in eastern North America. It is the tiniest of our birds and only reaches three inches long. Hummers nest in suburban trees but aren’t frequently seen in the summer. By early fall local young hummingbirds have fledged and birds that summered in northern states and Canada are passing through on their way south.
Hummingbirds have an amazingly ability to hover as they sip nectar. They prefer tubular flowers, and the best way to attract this bird to a yard is to cultivate a wide array of colorful late summer and fall blooms. Our family loves watching hummers hover near columbine blooms out the kitchen window. They also check out Obedient plant and Crown of Thorns among other domesticated blooms.
Hummingbirds readily sip sugar water from a wide variety of hummingbird feeders on the market. So, putting a feeder outside a kitchen window is likely to attract this tiny bird for your enjoyment. Adding red food coloring is not necessary.
Many people worry that artificially feeding hummingbirds will cause them to linger in Iowa where they may be caught by cold weather. Fortunately, their migration instinct is powerful, and all hummingbirds leave the north before cold weather arrives.
By early October hummers have caught a ride on a strong north wind and are well on their way south. Now is a good time to replace hummingbird feeders with seed feeders for winter birds.
by Winding Pathways | Jul 14, 2014 | Birds, Nature, Pests
Few Americans have heard of Nicholas Pike, even though the result of his work is visible in almost every yard throughout the world.
In 1852 Pike traveled to England for the Brooklyn Institute, purchased sparrows and had them shipped back to New York City. Fifty were released near the Narrows and they soon multiplied to become one of the most numerous birds in North America. They were later introduced to Australia and are common where people live all over the world.
English Sparrows thrive near people. They are at home from the gritty pavement of big cities to the barnyards of most farms. English sparrows live around people and can be found at nearly every bird feeder. They love to dine on pizza crusts and other food debris left in city parks. About the only place they don’t do well is in large prairies and big woodlands where people haven’t modified the land.
Although sparrows are amazingly numerous today, in the late 1800’s they were even more common. Before the advent of cars, cities and towns were crowded with work horses. Sparrows found an abundant food source picking grain from manure and feed hoppers. When autos replaced horses this food source disappeared and sparrow densities dropped.
Many bird lovers hate sparrows for good reason. Messy and noisy, they crowd out native birds and aren’t very colorful. But like most humans they are prolific immigrants from abroad that found a home here and prospered.
by Winding Pathways | Jul 14, 2014 | (Sub)Urban Homesteading, Garden/Yard, Nature
In this herbicide and mower age too many people believe the perfect lawn is a deep green monoculture of Kentucky bluegrass with nary a weed. They mow, spray, fertilize and fuss if they see a blade of grass out of place. It’s as if the lawn is an extension of the living room carpet.
Now comes the irony. The people who create these picture perfect lawns seem to spend their summer inside. Maybe that’s because perfect lawns are boring! They certainly are sterile.
There’s an old saying that the more money and effort invested in the perfect lawn the more problems will occur. And, that is true. Find a bare patch, a dandelion, or compacted grass and some lawn care company or garden store is ready to sell chemicals and seeds to cure it
Winding Pathways thinks differently. To us the perfect lawn is a vibrant place filled with life. Rather than a monoculture it’s an ever changing blend of many plant species that supports a diversity of fascinating animal life. It is a place governed by nature’s laws that entice the owner to go outside, look, listen, and learn the many lessons nature teaches to any observant person. Even the tiniest urban lawn offers its owner a free ecological education – while saving money. The ecological lawn is diverse, dynamic, colorful, inexpensive, and ecologically healthy.
Lawns are human manipulated ecosystems, but nature takes over the moment the mower is stowed in the garage. Nature loves diversity. Ecological conditions on even the tiniest lawn vary from place to place because the soil here may be very different from the soil a few feet away. Maybe it’s shady here. But sunny there. Here it gets lots of foot traffic. There it doesn’t. Here it gets lots of water. Just over there it bakes in the sun.
No single plant species is adapted to thrive in such varied conditions. To create a monoculture lawn requires defying nature.
Diversity is stability’s key. Our lawn hosts at least 30 plant species. Each is adapted to slightly different ecological conditions. If August brings blistering heat and drought, dry loving species spread, while moisture lovers fade. Switch the conditions and the plants shift. Always changing. Sometimes puzzling but always interesting.
No two seasons are ever identical so it’s impossible to know in advance what the growing season will bring. A diverse lawn is well buffered and prospers no matter what happens. Some plants will grow without benefit of irrigation, fertilizer, or pesticides! People may call them “weeds”, but we call “mother nature’s stitches.”
Just as weather varies, so does soil. Some lawn species enjoy rich loose topsoil, while just a few feet away others struggle to thrive in rocky, sandy, compacted, or simply infertile soil. Those plants most adapted to each particular soil condition will dominate in its tiny lawn microhabitat and no single species is likely to ever prosper across a lawn in the complex mix of changing weather and varied soil.
Modern housing developments are often created by scraping off topsoil and compacting subsoil under the wheels of construction equipment. To make the home look good, builders apply a veneer of sod on awful soil and hope the house sells soon. Usually the grass of choice is Kentucky bluegrass, a species native to cool moist Europe, not late summer American droughts. Nature responds by introducing dozens of species of better-adapted plants to diversify and buffer the lawn. Sadly, too many people call them weeds and persecute them, creating an endless need to spray and water to maintain an ecologically unhealthy lawn.
The healthy lawn isn’t uniform. Its texture varies depending on the blend of plant species living from spot to spot. It will probably have white clover that adds nitrogen to the soil and allows kids to make fun clover chains. It might have some a purslane or two, which make delicious eating. Probably will have common plantain, a harmless plant brought to North America from England. Every weed has its place, its story, and usually a benefit for people.
Allowing a lawn to diversify itself offers homeowners a chance to see nature at work as plant species change from season to season and year to year. A close observer receives an ecological education while saving money otherwise spent on water and chemicals.
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by Winding Pathways | Jul 14, 2014 | (Sub)Urban Homesteading, Flowers/Grasses, Foraging, Nature
Dandelions by the millions pop up like magic in lawns, along roadsides, and just about anywhere else that sunlight reaches bare soil. They are probably the most recognized and widespread plants in the world.
A Eurasian native, dandelions reached North America as precious garden seeds brought across the ocean by our earliest immigrants. They began spreading across the continent before the Revolutionary War. For thousands of years people appreciated the dandelion’s culinary and medicinal properties. Its Latin name, Taraxacum officinale, means “official remedy for disorders.” Imagine living in Europe during the Dark Ages. Winters were cold and dark. Diets were monotonous and lacked vitamins. By late winter many people suffered severe vitamin deficiencies. They were weak, lethargic and vulnerable to fatal diseases. Then, with the first few warm days vitamin rich dandelions began growing. People ate them and vitamin deficiencies evaporated. This humble plant restored health. No wonder immigrants carried dandelion seeds across the ocean when they immigrated to the New World! How ironic that a plant that can do no harm to humans and once provided important food and medicine is today hated. If dandelions were finicky and needed special cultivation and care maybe homeowners would appreciate them! Children love bright yellow dandelion flowers and delight in blowing seeds off the puffy sphere that follows the bloom. Instead of persecuting dandelions perhaps we’d all be better off it we took a lesson from kids and just enjoyed them.
Why Dandelions Invade Lawns
In order to thrive in a lawn, dandelions need two conditions: a scrap of bare soil and sunshine. When meticulous homeowners attempt to create a monoculture lawn by mowing closely, removing lawn clippings, and aerating the soil they create perfect growing conditions for dandelions. Fluffy dandelion parachutes carry millions of dandelion seeds through the air which land nearly everywhere. If growing conditions are not good where the seed lands it won’t thrive. But if the seed has the good fortune to descend onto a closely cropped lawn, it will quickly sprout and flower to the consternation of the owner. They poison and dig out the dandies and mow the lawn to the nubbin, creating more perfect conditions for new seeds to sprout. Dandelions are probably the world’s best plant for the herbicide industry!
Reducing Dandelion Populations in an Ecological Lawn
A nonsprayed lawn is always likely to have a few dandelions, but the best to manage a lawn to reduce plant numbers is to keep the ground shady and avoid bare soil. Follow these easy steps:
- Avoid herbicides.
- Set the mower cutting depth high to allow grass to grow tall, shading the soil beneath. Mow as infrequently as possible. Leave clippings in place and never remove “thatch.”
- Avoid bare soil whenever possible.
- Eat them. Dandelions are good food!
- Let kids pick the flowers.
Eating Dandelions
Timing is the secret to enjoying this nutritious plant. Most people know dandelions can be eaten. But, the few adventurous people who have tried them often are repelled by the plant’s bitterness. Dandelions, like most other edible greens, are best when the leaves are very young. Pick them in early spring just after they’ve started growing. Bitterness sets in as the leaves mature and the weather turns hot. The best dandelions were covered by leaves in the fall and are semi-blanched when picked in spring. Mix cleaned baby dandelion leaves into salads for a peppery zing or boil as a potherb. Young leaves are best and require the least amount of work. Steam them changing the water twice. Season with butter, salt and pepper as desired. Some folks toss the greens with chopped bacon. They are tasty. Older dandelion leaves can also be eaten but must be cooked in several changes of water to remove the bitterness. Gather mature leaves. Bring a saucepan of water to a boil and put the washed leaves in. Boil for a few minutes while bringing another saucepan of water to a boil. Remove the leaves from the first pot, drain, and add them into the clean boiling water. It may take two or three water changes, but eventually the bitterness will disappear. Season as desired. Dandelion roots are also edible and can be made into a coffee-like substitute. Consult a wild foods book for details.
by Winding Pathways | Jul 14, 2014 | (Sub)Urban Homesteading, Flowers/Grasses, Garden/Yard, Nature
Hot moist weather is a boon to crabgrass. This European native was brought to America centuries ago and is a hated lawn and garden weed.
Crabgrass is an annual that sprouts as soon as moist soil reaches about 60 degrees. It dies at first frost but not before producing thousands of seeds that persist in the soil a long time waiting for proper growing conditions. Rapidly growing crabgrass can quickly overwhelm a vegetable garden or make a lawn look splotchy.
Crabgrass grows close to the ground. When its nodes touch the soil they quickly take root, enabling the plant to rapidly expand outward. Homeowners seeking the perfect lawn ironically create perfect growing conditions for the weed. Because it hugs the ground close mowing stresses desirable grass species while favoring prostrate crabgrass. Shallow watering also helps the shallow rooted annual.
Crabgrass comes with benefits. It reduces erosion by quickly covering bare soil, and many species of domestic livestock and wildlife enjoy munching its leaves. Some wild animals enjoy its plentiful seeds.
Herbicides can reduce crabgrass abundance but it’s virtually impossible to eliminate it from a lawn or garden. Hand pulling will keep it away from tomatoes and beans, and setting the mower higher may reduce its lawn abundance.
When you find crabgrass in your yard consider this: Crabgrass is like Mother Nature’s stitches. Severely cut your hand or leg and the doctor will hold the wound closed with stitches. When homeowners bare the soil, they make it vulnerable to erosion. Think opening a wound. Enter crabgrass. It grows amazingly fast on bare soil and keeps it in place during heavy rains. Crabgrass has its place in nature, and we should all appreciate those plants able to quickly colonize and stabilize soil.
