Ashwood Waldorf School

View fullsize

Looking at lichens in the lab with Alice before the lichen hike

View fullsize

Enjoying the intertidal on Two-Bush Island

The Ashwood Waldorf School from Rockport, Maine joined us on Hurricane for two days of island exploration. For the Botany focus of this program Alice took them on a walk around the island to find and identify the three main categories lichens: crustose, foliose, and fruticose. Another hike focused on the wild edible plants on the island, as well as what plants are flowering out during this stage of spring. Students also got a chance to explore the intertidal area between Hurricane and Two Bush Island. They found lots of fun and interesting intertidal creatures, and learned how kelp survives as a marine plant.

The last day was spent rock climbing. Students learned about different types of climbing gear, how to boulder on granite blocks that were cut from the main face over a century ago, and how to belay and support one another while climbing. Everyone completed their own successful climbs and enjoyed being able to reach the top and enjoy the view out over the open ocean.

One of the best parts of this program was having Ashwood’s program overlap with Nobleboro Middle School. While it can be a dance for us instructors of who is teaching what to who, when and where, it’s great to see us all gathered together at meal times, sharing our island stories from the day!

View fullsize

North Haven Middle School 2014

To kick off the fall season on Hurricane we hosted the North Haven Middle School 5th and 6th graders for a two-day exploration of wild edible botany. Students started off by learning about the basic names of plant parts and how to identify plants with field guides. They also learned about how plants edibility changes with the seasons, about edible plant habitat and environment, and the differences between domestic edible plants and wild edible plants.

A student spends time drawing a field guide entry for her edible plant: the high-bush cranberry

From there they focused on looking at the top ten edible plants that can be found on Hurricane. Each student was assigned one of those plants and spent time on a hike around the island identifying them and collecting specimens, which they brought back to the lab to do more research. The students then worked on creating their own field guide entry of their foraged edible plant, which included sketches and paintings as well as information. The North Haven Middle School students did a great job at being creative with their field guide entries and will continue to work on them back at school. 

The edible plants that students focused on while they were at Hurricane include: bayberry, cattail, rose hips, sheep and wood sorrel, huckleberry, high-bush cranberry, red clover, orach, sea rocket, beach pea, mustard greens, and raspberries and blackberries.

We finished the first evening with a Hurricane-sourced rosehip applesauce (a great vanilla ice cream topper), and a sweet red clover, sorrel, apple, and rosehip drink. We hope students will be able to pick out tasty trail-side edibles when they are back on North Haven!

Botany ISLE 2014

We had a fantastic 10 days with students who came from out to Hurricane from as far as New York City to learn about the wildflowers, trees, vines, and shrubs on Hurricane Island. The week started off by looking at Hurricane’s gardens and the difference between domestic and wild edible plants. Students learned about soil health and compost, how to manage a straw bale garden, and the difference between linear and sustainable farming and gardening practices. They also learned how crop rotation can keep plant pests at bay as well as contribute to the overall health of a garden.

Students key into leaf characteristics to help identify the difference between quaking and big-tooth aspen trees.

We also challenged students to plan out the meadow garden plot for next years garden. They did a fantastic job and adhered to crop rotation practices as well as suggested a few new plants that we should try to grow. Students took an afternoon to get their hands dirty in our gardens and helped turn over the adjacent plot to the meadow garden to expand it for next year. They also planted seedlings in new rows and put fresh compost in our flower garden. This focus of farming and gardening during the beginning of the Botany program led to a field trip to Turner Farm on North Haven Island, where they were able to explore and learn about what a large scale sustainable farm looks like.

After domestic plants we moved on to wild edibles and students learned to identify and forage for sorrel, cattails, beach peas, orach, elderberry flowers, and raspberries, which they concocted into a Hurricane sourced meal, which was also supplemented by the vegetables and herbs grown in our gardens.

Each morning featured a different category of plant and students learned all the vocabulary and identification techniques to properly key out the most common wild flowers, trees, and ferns on Hurricane.

As a fun final project students collaborated to create a botany themed rap song, which featured some of their favorite plants that they learned about over their ten-day stay.   

Register for our 2015 Botany ISLE program here! 

North Haven Middle School

In September 2012, North Haven Community School middle schoolers stayed overnight for a learning expedition exploring Hurricane Island’s wild edibles using Euell Gibbons’ book A Wild Way to Eat, written for Outward Bound students in 1967. Students used a nature journal designed by our science educator, along with Gibbons’ detailed descriptions of the plants and animals that existed locally 45 years ago to track the changes that the intervening time has wrought. They collected and analyzed samples of plants, fungi, and sea creatures, and they helped to prepare a meal created with wild foods they collected! Each student also produced a field guide entry for their assigned edible plant.

View fullsize

One student's field guide entry for Rosa Rugosa

North Haven Edible Botany

In 2012, North Haven Community School middle schoolers stayed overnight for a learning expedition exploring Hurricane Island’s wild edibles using Euell Gibbons’ book A Wild Way to Eat, written for Outward Bound students in 1967. Students used a nature journal designed by our science educator, along with Gibbons’ detailed descriptions of the plants and animals that existed locally 45 years ago to track the changes that the intervening time has wrought. They collected and analyzed samples of plants, fungi, and sea creatures, and they helped to prepare a meal created with wild foods they collected! Each student also produced a field guide entry for their assigned edible plant. 

A North Haven student learns about the wild beach pea