In this activity, you will make your own herb/weed/wildflower identification booklet complete with pictures.

For this you will need either a digital camera or regular camera. Go on a nature walk. This is the time of year when weeds and wild flowers are starting to grow. On your walk, find and take pictures of all the little flowers and “things” you see growing. Once you have your photos in hand, get on the internet and see if you can identify what you have growing in your neck of the woods.

Some ways of identifying your plant use leaves. Leaf types are described by the way they are grouped on the stalk or as stems that come off the stalk, how many leaves are in a group and how they are arranged. Leaves are also described by the shape of the leaf and whether the edge of the leaf is jagged or smooth. Leaves are also described by whether or not they have veins that run in straight lines through the leaf or are web-like through the leaf coming off a main vein.

Other skills you will learn are how flowers are identified, how stems are identified and how the whole plant is identified.

To make your book you will need to make 3 identification pages. One will describe the different leaf types, one the different flower arrangement types and one describing stem types. Then the following pages will be the plants and wildflowers you photographed. On each page place a photo of the plant, it’s scientific name and common name and then the descriptions of its leaf, flower and stem characteristics. Be sure to use correct labeling technique when showing the stem, leaf and flower characteristics. If you find more plants coming up a month from now, take their picture and add them to the book. When the season is over you’ll have the book as a memory of sunny days. Next year when the growing season begins again, you’ll have the identification key to use as your guide when you go on your walk. If you photograph your child/ren with the plants, you’ll also have a record of their growth too!

Your kids will learn to identify common native wild plants and flowers, will learn how to make and use an identification key and will learn the actual physical characteristics used in identifying a plant. They will also have fun outdoors, learn correct labeling technique and have a record they will come back to again and again for learning and for reminiscing.

Here's some photos from our recent nature walk:

Looking at flowers in a bug box.                 A rabbit hole!                              Resting at Nana's Lake