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Leaf Chromatography and Pumpkin Painting!
Leaf chromatography is an experiment that allows us to see the colorful pigments that leaves have hidden inside them. The green leaf color is the chlorophyll, which helps plants absorb the yellow and blue wavelengths of light. Chlorophyll is the main pigment used for photosynthesis, or harvesting energy from sunlight for food for the plants!
There are two types of Chlorophyll:
Chlorophyll A: Blueish Green Pigment
Chlorophyll B: Yellowish- Green Pigment.
In the fall, chlorophyll begins to break down, and the other pigments, which have been there all along, are finally revealed. Yellow leaves have pigments called Xanthophyll, orange leaves have a pigment called Carotenoids. Anthocyanins give leaves their intense red and purple pigments.
This was a fun experiment for the kids to understand what roll the pigments play in the leaves and plants. The kids then enjoyed decorating their spooky pumpkins!
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A warm spiced drink with Honey, Apples, Cinnamon, and Cloves for cool fall weather
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Cover Crops 101
Cover crops are incredibly useful little plants and you should utilize them whenever you have empty space in your gardens and don't plan on planting anything new. They help maintain ideal helpful levels of organic matter and Nitrogen.
Benefits of Cover Crops
- Cover crops reduce erosion of your soil. Having plants in the ground anchors and protects the dirt from rain and wind!
- They help combat pesky weeds by already occupying that space.
- They keep your soil healthy, encouraging healthy mycorrhizae, critters, and help the soil retain water! If you plant a legume they'll even add nitrogen!
How to decide on a cover crop? Winter rye (Secale cereale) is one of the most hardy cover crops and can be seeded now and worked into the soil in early spring. Hairy vetch,(Vicia villosa) is another very common cover crop which can withstand snowcover!
Lastly, be sure to pull your cover crop before it seeds! Don't want all these plants popping up where you don't want them!
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