Nature's great composting project - Make a leaf scrap book
Nature's great composting project - Make a leaf scrap book
Posted Nov 14, 2011 by:
It's the time of year when nature begins her own large scale composting process. It's also the perfect time to wrap up warm, and head off for a long autumn walk, armed with plastic bags so that on the way you can collect different types and colours of autumn leaves.
Challenge the children to find different species, shapes, sizes and colours. All the time, teaching them to learn about the various species of trees around them and enjoy and appreciate their environment. Match the leaves to the tree - do you think this leaf matches the leaves still left on the tree? Note which species loose their leaves first, and those that change colour more quickly by what you find on the ground and pairing them up with what is still left on the tree. You could walk the same route every year and carry out the same leaf task and see how the mix of leaves changes over the years to come.
Once you return home, preserve the leaves for the future, simply by sticking them into a scrapbook. You can start by identifying each species, using books and the internet to identify the various different types. Pile the leaves in species order and use the best samples to identify each species you find for the scrapbook. Then you can mix size, colour and species together to create more artistic pages. Another artistic thing is to use finger paints and paint with the leaves to make stencil paintings, either in primary colours for a nice, bold, bright painting, or mixing colours to encourage to the children to learn more about colours. You can’t beat a messy painting afternoon!
Don’t forget that if you get carried away collecting too many leaves, all those leftovers that don’t quite make the scrapbook can be put straight into your compost bin. To explain how the composting process works and to put it very simply :-
Plant waste + moisture + warmth + air + micro organisms + time = compost
To see how it is done on a grander scale take a look at how we prepare 100% organic compost in bulk or if you want your compost ready made in handy packs you can buy Easi-grow bags of compost from the online shop.
Remember that the best composts are made when mixing or layering the green waste you put in, so mix the leaves with grass cuttings and other garden wastes.
Make your autumn walks last throughout your children’s childhood by taking the time to make a simple scrapbook and then reaping the benefits of leftovers composted to use on your garden next year.
