PeeKdesignsenvironmental & educational Designs & Publications

Education Program

Our Farmers, Our FutureAn education kit to support the Enviro-Stories Education Program

Catchment Management AuthorityCentral West

Catchment Management AuthorityBorder Rivers-Gwydir

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Using this education kitThe Our Farmers, Our Future Education Kit has been developed to encourage student investigations into life on the farm. This new found knowledge will support students’ narrative writing and illustration skills for the 2012 Enviro-Stories Education Program “Our Farmers, Our Future”.

The kit consists of Information Sheets, Teacher’s Notes and Activity Sheets that can be used in the classroom.

Enviro-Stories Education ProgramThe Enviro-Stories Education Program, established by PeeKdesigns in 2008, involves students learning about and developing a “sense of place” within their local environment and natural resources. They do this through research, reflection and creative storytelling. Their stories are then published for electronic and hardcopy distribution.

www.envirostories.com.au

© PeeKdesigns 2012

Title: Our Farmers, Our Future Education Kit

Written by: Peter Coleman, PeeKdesigns

Copyright: This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution - Noncommercial - Share Alike 3.0 Australia License. This licence allows for distribution, remixing and building upon the work, but only if it is for non-commercial purposes, the original creator/s (and any other nominated parties) are credited and the derivative works is licensed under the same terms.

To view a copy of the license, visit www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/au/

Farming in Australia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Life on a Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

My Food’s Origin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

From Farm to Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Where the water flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Water is a precious resource . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Sustainable Farming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Controlling Pests Sustainably . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Is my Habitat Healthy? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

From Seed to Fruit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Pollination & Pollinators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Wildlife Corridors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Weeds and Ferals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Wildlife on the Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Composting your organics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Get Gardening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Contents

PeeKdesignsenvironmental & educational Designs & Publications

Acknowledgements: This program is funded by the Cotton Catchment Communities CRC and Central West and Border Rivers-Gwydir Catchment Management Authorities. Funding had been provided by the Australian Government’s Caring for our Country initiative and NSW Government’s Catchment Action initiative.

Catchment Management AuthorityCentral West

Catchment Management AuthorityBorder Rivers-Gwydir

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i n F O R M AT i O n S h E E T

Farming in AustraliaI love a sunburnt country,

A land of sweeping plains,

Of ragged mountain ranges,

Of droughts and flooding rains.

I love her far horizons,

I love her jewel-sea,

Her beauty and her terror –

The wide brown land for me!

This verse from Dorothea Mackellar’s poem “My Country” paints a great picture of the Australian landscape. This portrayal describes our beautiful country and hints at some of the various challenges of living here. It is these difficulties that our farmers face on a daily basis to produce food and fibres for Australia and other countries.

Farming is a major industry in Australia with over 60 percent of the land being farmed, employing 370,000 people and contributing $43 billion dollars to the economy. (http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/austn-farms-and-farming-communities)

It has become increasingly important for our farmers to manage the natural resources sustainably to increase production and help protect themselves against the ravages of the Australian climate.

Developing a sustainable landscape throughout Australia is an important step in preserving our country for future generations and guaranteeing our ability to keep generating enough produce.

The types of stories we are looking for!This year’s Enviro-Stories Education Program embraces the celebration of the Australian Year of the Farmer and the National Year of Reading.

Under the banner of “Our Farmers, Our Future” we are looking for students to use their imagination and write and illustrate stories about “Life on the Farm.” Stories can be from a human, plant or animal perspective or about events that occur on farms.

Stories should display knowledge about:

Where does our food come from? - stories should explore what is being produced on the farm i.e. what is grown or raised there.

Sustainable farming - stories should explore how we look after our farms and our natural environment e.g. positive ways to protect the farms natural resources, livestock, crops and farmland.

An Introduction to FarmingTo help introduce you to farming in Australia, and where our food comes from, an online presentation with activity sheet has been prepared.

Go to http://www.envirostories.com.au/uploads/ES2012CMA/Intro2Farming.html

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1. What do we get from farms that we need in our lives?

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2. List some of the things a farmer needs to know or needs to be.

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An Introduction to Farming

Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

3. Use the “Food, Fibre or Other” slides to fill in the following table.

Farm Food Fibre Other Describe the Use

E.g. Beef Cattle ü ü üMeat – steak, vealHair – brushes, feltSkin – leather

Dairy Cattle

Cotton

Grain

Wheat

Sheep (meat)

Sheep (Wool)

Fruit & Vegetable

Poultry

Viticulture

Goat

Pig

Go through the “An Introduction to Farming” presentation and answer the following.http://www.envirostories.com.au/uploads/ES2012CMA/Intro2Farming.html

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Farming is an extremely demanding job as there is always a lot to do. It is also very rewarding watching your crops or livestock grow and knowing this is the result of all your hard work. Farming is a fantastic lifestyle for those willing to put in the effort.

Enviro-Stories entries should involve some knowledge about what occurs on a farm. To give you some ideas read through some of the jobs of a farmer from the Delungra area (north west NSW) in a typical week. They have a mixed farm with cattle and some cropping.

Life on a Farm

• Get up at 5.45 am each day.

• First job is to put new fence posts up along the creek to limit stock access and protect the creek.

• Put a water trough in the paddock that you have fenced off from the creek. This gives stock alternative water access so they are not damaging the creek.

• Muster cattle to the stockyards.

• Separate cattle that you plan to sell at the weekly cattle sales.

• Take remaining cattle to a different paddock to allow pastures to regenerate so that adequate groundcover is maintained and to make sure that stock have access to good quality feed.

• Load cattle onto stock truck and take them into local cattle sale.

• Vehicle maintenance to make sure the tractor, motor bikes, ute and all other farm vehicles are working properly.

• Check calving heifers to make sure that they are having their calves without any difficulty.

• Bring heifers into yards to help deliver calves if necessary.

• Hop on tractor and sow oat seed for stock feed. This can take days of work depending on how big the area of sowing is.

• Fix pump at shed so that the house and water troughs have water.

• Meet with the agronomist (an expert in soil and crop production) to discuss how the crop is growing. This lets the farmer know whether there are any weeds or pests in the crops and whether it needs any fertiliser. It also lets the farmer know about soil moisture so they know how much to water the crop.

• Water the crops.

• Weed the crops.

• Fertilise the crops.

• Give extra feed to cattle if necessary.

• Drench the cattle to help fight against worms and parasites.

• Feed the dogs.Courtesy of A. Monie

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Life on a FarmA Crop’s Growing CycleIf you have crops on your farm you have to know about the growing cycle of your crop. This means when to plant, water, fertilise and harvest. The following diagram indicates the different stages of a crop’s growing cycle.

Fertilising

Leave stubble to mulch

Harvesting

Weeding

Watering

Planting

Monitoring before plantingCrop Rotation

Checking soil temperature and moisture to make sure conditions are suitable for planting and germination.

Competition plants should be removed.

Plants may need a fertiliser (e.g. compost) to stimulate plant growth.

Growing the same crop every year in the same paddock can be bad for the soil, so we can rotate different crops and rest the land to help soil health.

Planting an off season crop (like a legume) can be a great way to introduce nitrogen and other nutrients back into the soil.

Soil Preparation

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Australian farmers grow a diverse range of produce. We can easily purchase these items at a supermarket but do we actually know where they come from.

This activity looks at identifying the use of both plants and animals for food and fibre.

Activity 1 - PlantsExplain to your students that different plants provide us with different foods. Discuss the obvious foods as a class e.g. lettuce or spinach is the leaves, apples and oranges are the fruit.

This activity intends to test students’ awareness of which part of the plant some foods come from.

Using the list of foods on the activity sheet, students need to try and work out which part of the plants they come from. Have them do this individually first then discuss any problems they had. You might like to talk about other foods that are not listed.

Activity 2 - AnimalsGo through with your students that different animals provide us with different foods and fibres.

This activity intends to test students’ awareness of which animal some foods come from. There may be some foods that they have never heard of before.

Using the food and fibre list on the activity sheet, students need to work out which animal they come from. Have them do this individually first then discuss any problems they had. You might like to talk about other foods and animals that are not listed.

Activity Sheet AnswersPlant Activity Sheet

Leaf: Cabbage, Lettuce, Spinach, Tea

Flower: Broccoli, Cauliflower, Honey

Fruit: Apple, Banana, Black Pepper, Cucumber, Pumpkin, Tomato

Seed: Bread, Chocolate, Peas, Rice, Canola Oil, Corn

Root: Beetroot, Carrot, Raddish, Potato

Sap: Sugar, Maple Syrup, Chewing Gum

Stem: Celery, Rhubarb, Spring Onions

Bark: Cinnamon

Animal Activity Sheet

Cow: Beef, Cheese, Hamburger, Leather, Milk, Veal

Sheep: Lamb, Leather, Mutton, Wool

Pig: Bacon, Ham, Leather, Pork

Chicken and Ducks: Drumsticks, Eggs, Feathers, Poultry

Deer: Venison

Goat: Cashmere, Cheese, Chevon, Milk, Mohair

T E Ac h E R ’S n OT E S

My Food’s Origin

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Australian farmers grow a diverse range of produce. We can easily purchase these items at a supermarket but do you actually know what part of the plant you are buying.

Put the different foods below into lists under the part of the plant you think they come from.

Flower. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Sap. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Stem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Seed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Leaf. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Root. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Fruit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Bark. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Lettuce Beetrootcauliflowerchocolateceleryhoney

cinnamoncucumberSpinachcornSugarPeas

carrotBroccoliTeacanola OilPumpkinBanana

Maple syrupBread (wheat)Black pepper RhubarbRadishApple

TomatoRiceSpring onionsPotatocabbagechewing gum

Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

My Food’s Origin - Plants

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Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Animals provide us with a lot of our food and fibre. Try and put the following items into their producer’s paddock (some can be multiple animals).

Bacon

Beef

Cashmere

Cheese

Chevon

Drumsticks

Eggs

Feathers

Ham

Hamburger Pattie

Lamb

Leather

Milk

Mohair

Mutton

Pork

Poultry

Veal

Venison

Wool

My Food’s Origin - Animals

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From Farm to Plate

T E Ac h E R ’S n OT E S

Have you ever wondered how the food you buy at the supermarket gets from the farm to you? It might sound simple but there are many people involved and a long way for it to travel.

The food journeyGrowers are the farmers who grow the raw produce for the food.

Processors take the raw produce and convert it into the form for the product requires.

Wholesaler/ Wholesale markets often buy food in bulk. They then on-sell it to retail grocers.

The transport industry is involved in many steps along the way. They transport the food from growers to processors to packagers. Transport can occur in many ways: trucks, ships, planes and train.

Packagers take the product and package and grade them into retail form.

Warehouse operators/distribution centres store the food for future use and organise it into orders for clients.

Retail grocers are responsible for displaying, marketing and selling the food.

Customer buys and consumes the finished product.

Buying LocalIt is always important to support your farmers by buying local produce. One way to minimise the distance your food has travelled, and get the freshest possible produce, is to buy from food markets, local grocers or straight from the farm.

Food on Wheels ActivityThis activity can be completed as a whole class.

Read through the “Food on Wheels” story.

To help you answer the questions, the diagram that is located at the bottom of the activity sheet can be drawn on a chalk/whiteboard.

Go through the story again and mark in the distances travelled between each stop on the journey.

Have students answer the questions in their workbooks.

Answers1. Grower > Transport > Wholesaler >

Transport > Processing Shed > Transport > Market > Transport > Distribution Centre > Transport > Retail Store > Transport > Customer

2. 6 times

3. 560 km

4. 10 km

Discussion questionsDo you know where the fruit in your lunch box came from? Lets take a look and see if there are any stickers that tell us.

How far do you think they have travelled?

Do you go to the local growers markets with your parents?

Do you know if your parents go to a local fruit grocer to get fresh fruit and vegetables, rather than at a supermarket?

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Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

From Farm to PlateRead this story about the journey of an apple from the farm to the customer and then answers the questions below.

Food on WheelsMandy from Orange walked into her local supermarket to buy an apple. She noticed a sticker on the apple that said, “Happy Apple Farm.” She smiled to herself as she knew this farm is only 10 km from Orange.

While it is great to make sure we buy local produce we sometimes do not realise how far it has travelled and how many hands it has passed through along the way. Help Mandy piece together this apples journey and see if it is as simple as going from farm to supermarket.

“Happy Apple Farm” is located 10 km outside Orange. The apples are picked each morning and put into fruit bins. The fruit is driven about 5 km from the orchard to the local wholesaler’s farm shed where it awaits pick up.

The wholesaler buys apples from all over the Orange area. A truck picks up the apples and they are driven 250 km to his processing shed in Sydney. Here the apples are washed, graded and boxed for sale in the market. They are then delivered 10 km down the road to the wholesale fruit and vegetable market.

The representative from the supermarket chooses the apples he wants from the wholesale markets. They are then shipped 40 km from the wholesale fruit and vegetable market to the supermarket distribution centre.

At the distribution centre the apples are stored until one of the supermarket branches needs that type of apple. They are organised into orders and sent out to all the retail stores.

Mandy’s apple is then transported 250 km back to the Orange retail supermarket store. Eventually the apple is taken out and put on display. Mandy buys the apple from her local supermarket and takes it home, 5 km away.

Buying Local

It is always important to support your farmers by buying local produce. One way to minimise the distance your food has travelled, and get the freshest possible produce, is to buy from food markets, local grocers or straight from the farm.

How far has Mandy’s apple travelled?1. There are 13 steps to the apples journey

from the farmer to Mandy the customer. Write the steps in order, including the transport (indicated with the lines on the diagram).

2. How many different times has the apple been transported around the countryside.

3. Using the distances in the story, calculate the total distance that the apple travelled to get to Mandy.

4. How far would the apple travel if Mandy bought it straight from the farmer and took it home?

DISTRIBUTION CENTRE

PROCESSING SHED

MARKET

WHOLESALER RETAIL STORE

GROWER CUSTOMER

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What is a catchment?A catchment describes any surface where water falls and drains to an end point. That means that everywhere on Earth is located within a catchment.

A catchment can be small, like the roof of a house, or it can be huge, like the Murray-Darling Basin.

Whatever we do in a catchment affects the water that flows through it. For example, if a town pollutes its river water (e.g. through non-filtered stormwater runoff), then other water users downstream will be using that same polluted water. This is not healthy for our wildlife, our agriculture or our own health.

To look after our catchments we need to be careful of how we look after our land and everything it supports. A healthy landscape gives us healthy and productive farms, wildlife that flourishes and happy communities.

Classroom ActivitiesA Catchment StoryYou can use the lesson plan of “A Catchment Story” to understand how the impacts of our actions on a catchment work.

http://education.brgcma.com/index.php?page=catchments

Are you a catchment hero?This interactive quiz activity can be used to follow up “A Catchment Story” as a whole class or individually.

Murray-Darling BasinThese education resources are for teachers, students and anyone interested in learning about the Murray-Darling Basin.

http://www.mdba.gov.au/services/education-resources

T E Ac h E R ’S n OT E S

Where the water flows

Your local catchmentTo find out more information about your local catchment please go to your local natural resource management authority.

NSW

Central West CMA www.cw.cma.nsw.gov.au

Border Rivers-Gwydir CMA

www.brg.cma.nsw.gov.au

Namoi CMA www.namoi.cma.nsw.gov.au

Lachlan CMA www.lachlan.cma.nsw.gov.au

Western CMA www.western.cma.nsw.gov.au

Murrumbidgee CMA www.murrumbidgee.cma.nsw.gov.au

QLD

Queensland Murray Darling Committee

www.qmdc.org.au

Fitzroy Basin Association

www.fba.org.au

Condamine Alliance www.condaminealliance.com.au

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Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Water is one of the most precious resources to a farming community. It is also one of the most unpredictable resources as well. A farms water sources may include dams, bores, wells, rivers, channels, recycled water and town water.

Droughts and floods can be very damaging to a farm and they can affect the ability of farmers to maintain a healthy farm and earn a good income.

Water quality is another issue that affects our farmland. Some water may be unsuitable for irrigation, stock, household or other farm uses. Understanding water quality issues on a farm can help prevent problems and help maximise productivity.

Using a dice, move your way through the water issues affecting farms. Discuss the good or bad actions that you fall on along the way with your friends.

Water is a precious resource

A drought hits your farm and your crop

and stock suffer from lack of water

and poor water quality.

Miss 2 turns.

You put off fixing your fences and

stock trample the creek banks.

go back to the start.

You don’t maintain good groundcover.

Your paddock erodes into the

local creek.

Miss 1 turn.

START HERE

FINISH

You attend a property management planning course to help you manage your farm

and its resources.

go forward 2 spaces.

You change your irrigation system over to one that is more efficient

and uses less water.

go forward 2 spaces.

You borrow water quality testing equipment to

test your water.

go forward 2 spaces.

You plant trees along ridges to help lower the watertable and reduce salinity.

go forward 3 spaces.

You get funding to fence off your

waterways and put in more water troughs for stock.

Go forward 2 spaces.

The winner must land in the FINISH hexagon on a full throw. You keep playing until someone wins.

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Sustainable FarmingWhat does Sustainable Farming mean?Sustainable farming can be described as using environmentally friendly farming methods that help preserve both the biodiversity (the variety of life) and natural resources of our farmland.

Sustainable farming is making sure that we manage our natural resources in a balance with profitable production. If the balance is right, we get a healthy and productive landscape and happy people who are more equipped to look after the land for future generations.

Our Natural ResourcesNatural resources are anything that occurs naturally in an area. They are the water, soil, climate, native vegetation, native animals, habitats, shade and shelter that can be found in your area.

By protecting natural resources we can preserve the environment making sure we have a healthy countryside. Managing the natural resources on farms can lead to farms blending in better with the landscape and producing better quality produce. Other benefits include a farm that does not need as many fertilisers or chemical treatments.

The soil is a farmer’s best friend. Everything on a farm relies on the soil and it should be taken care of so it can grow the best quality crops and pastures.

We have a responsibility to have the smallest impact on an area to preserve it for all Australians and for future generations.

Photos courtesy of Border Rivers-Gwydir CMA

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Controlling Pests SustainablyBeneficial animalsOur native wildlife can help to make a healthy farm. They can help with pollination of crops and native palnts, as well as controlling pest problems.

Encouraging these animals can help reduce the need for chemical pesticides and fertilisers. They are known as “beneficials.”

Beneficials can be any range of animals that help a farm. They can be birds, bats, small mammals, insects, spiders, mites, worms and even bacteria.

Examples of beneficial animals• Birds eat insects like moths, scarab

beetles and thrips.

• Bats eat insects like moths and mosquitoes.

• Beneficial insects eat other pest insects (e.g. lady bettles eat aphids)

• Small mammals eat insects that forage close to the ground or on trees.

• Spiders are generalists and will catch a variety of insects.

• Worms and bacteria help to decompose rotting material in the soil. They reintroduce nutrients into the soil.

Looking after our beneficials Patches of native vegetation are a great way to encourage the beneficial creatures to your farm. These bush patched provide habitat and, if linked together with corridors of bush, provide a way around the farm.

To attract our local beneficials we need bush patches that are left natural and messy. This means leaving fallen branches, logs and rocks where they are. This provides habitat for the beneficial animals.

A healthy habitat needs a lot of layers within it to support all types of animals. Leaf litter, trees, grasses, logs, dead standing trees, shrubs, herbs and other flowering plants all help to attract beneficials to a farm.

Supporting the beneficialsA little help from the farmerBeneficials can’t to the job alone, sometimes they need a little help from the farmer.

Farmers might still need to use pesticides to protect their crops. When using pesticides there are two important things a farmer needs to remember:

1. Use pesticides that have the least effect on beneficial animals.

2. Do not let pesticides drift into the native vegetation that provides habitat for the beneficials.

Farmers can also do things on the farm like:

• Removing weeds as they can encourage pests and diseases.

• Providing water sources for beneficials.

WEBSITE: http://www.cottoncrc.org.au/industry/Publications/Pests_and_Beneficials/Cotton_Insect_Pest_and_Beneficial_Guide

Photo courtesy of cotton cRc, L. Wilson

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An organism’s habitat is the location in which it lives. Many of our beneficial animals need good habitat to live in so they can keep our farms healthy.

A healthy habitat needs a variety of things to be present. The most important thing is vegetation (trees, shrubs and grasses) and the leaf litter they create. Having these present is the first step to a healthy habitat.

Healthy habitats should be messy with fallen branches, old logs and rocks scattered throughout. These things provide habitat for many other animals. As they breakdown, they provide important nutrients into the soil.

Healthy habitats need to be connected to other patches of healthy habitat. This allows our beneficials to move around the edges of crops safely so that they can feed on the pest insects.

Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Is my Habitat Healthy?

Tick the boxes that describe your schools habitat. If you live on a farm, try it again at home.

HABITAT NONE SOME LOTSTrees

Shrubs

Ground Cover / Grasses

Leaf Litter

Rocks

Logs

Tree Hollows

Flowering Plants

Water

Adapted from “Biodiversity for Kids: Stage 2 Science - Teacher’s Guide” 2003 NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service.

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i n F O R M AT i O n S h E E T

Starting life as a seedMost plants start their life as a seed*. Each tiny seed contains all the information that tells that plant how tall it will grow, how deep its roots will grow, when it will flower and what type of fruit it will produce.

Flowers first have to be pollinated before a fruit, and then a seed, can form. These flowers get pollinated by animals, wind or water.

Looking in your Lunch BoxTake a look in your lunch box and see what foods originally came from a seed. Do you know how it grew? Was it from a tree, bush or a grass?

Using this life cycle diagram, see if you can draw something similar for your food item/s.

From Seed to Fruit

With water and the right temperature, the seed swells

and begins to make a new plant.

Fruit forms where pollination has

occurred.

Seeds are scattered away from the parent

plant by animals, wind and water.

This helps new plants avoid competition for

water, light and nutrients.

Mature plant flowers and produces nectar.

Wind and flower/ nectar feeders

spread the pollen between plants.

Stems grow up towards the light - this is a seedling.

Leaves unfold to take more sunlight and roots anchor

the plant.

Seedling grows into a sapling

Plant matures

* Some plants will start their life as a small piece of plant material, like a stem, that has dropped off from its parent e.g. a cactus.

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Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

From Seed to Fruit Flip BookUse the following pictures to make a flip book of the life cycle of a tree. Colour, cut and paste onto a lightweight cardboard. Put them in reverse order and staple together (the seed should be at the back). Flip through the images and watch the tree grow. If you are feeling creative, add more growing or pollinating stages to the tree’s life cycle.

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T E Ac h E R ’S n OT E S

All plants need to reproduce and spread their seeds and they do this via pollination. The process of pollination is helped by animals, wind and sometimes water.

This activity is to introduce the terminology of pollination and pollinators to your students. It is important to understand that without these processes occurring, our natural and agricultural environments would be in a lot of trouble.

Seeing what’s around usTake students outside into the school grounds. Get them to look for plants that are flowering.

Q: What can you see or hear near or on the flowering plants?

Students will hopefully see insects in and around the flowers, in particular bees and/or ants.

Q: What other animals might like to eat or drink the nectar from the flowers?

Pick some different flowers and bring them back to the classroom for a closer inspection.

Parts of a flowerA flower is often composed of male and female organs that they need to reproduce. Sometimes this is not the case; some plants have separate male and female plants e.g. she-oak/casuarina and passionfruit.

Draw a diagram of a flower’s structure on the board and explain to students how a flower is pollinated. You can use the following pollination information sheet as a handout.

Pollinators helping our plantsQ: If pollen has to be transferred from one flower to another, how can animals help?

Animals will get the pollen stuck on their bodies as they travel from flower to flower. They pick up the pollen from one flower while drinking the nectar. When they are at another flower, this pollen often drops off onto the sticky STIGMA that receives the pollen for pollination.

Q: List as many pollinators as you can.

The following is just a small list of potential pollinators in the natural world. There may be some on this list that you didn’t know about.

• Insects e.g. Bees, Butterflys, Ants, Wasps

• Birds e.g. honeyeaters, wattlebirds, spinebills

• Mammals e.g. flying foxes, pygmy and honey possums, sugar gliders, native rodents

Have a look in books or on the internet for images of these animals. Aks students to take a good look at there features.

Q: What makes these animals good pollinators?

Pollination RelayGo outside and play this fun relay activity where the students are the pollinators. This relay represents the successful pollination of flowers.

Talk to your class about some of the potential threats to losing out pollinators. For example, the world is losing many of its bees to a tiny mite. Without bees to pollinate crops and orchards, as well as native plants, many of our food sources will be in trouble.

Pollination & Pollinators

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i n F O R M AT i O n S h E E T

What is Pollination?Ultimately, all life on Earth depends on plants to provide food, shelter, and oxygen for other living things. Consequently, plant reproduction is crucial to all other life. The first step in plant reproduction is the intricate process called pollination, which occurs when pollen grains (male) reach the stigma (female) of the same species of plant.

Most flowering plants (90 percent) depend on animals to make the vital pollen delivery. The remaining flowering plants rely on wind and sometimes water to ferry pollen. Pollinating animals do the job for a reward: food, usually in the form of nectar.

Parts of a FlowerBoth the male and the female reproductive parts of a plant are in the center of the flower. The male, pollen-producing part is called the anther, held aloft by a stalk called a filament. The entire male apparatus is called a stamen. Each pollen grain is unique to its species. The female reproductive part of a plant, the stigma, sits on top of a style, or stalk, which leads to an ovary at the base. The entire female plant mechanism is called a pistil.

How does pollination by animals work? A pollinator (such as a bee, bird, flying fox or butterfly) in search of food visits a plant. While crawling around the blossom looking for nectar, the pollinator rubs against the pollen, which becomes attached to different parts of the pollinator’s body. When the pollinator visits another blossom, it transfers the pollen grains from its body onto the stigma. After it reaches the stigma, the pollen grain grows a tiny pollen tube down the style and into an egg-filled ovary. Eventually, the pollen and the egg form a seed.

Importance of PollinatorsOn a worldwide scale, animals pollinate more than three-quarters of the staple crop plants that people eat. Scientists estimate that one out of every three bites of food we take is the result of a successful animal-plant pollination system.

For instance, consider a hamburger with “the works” (including tomato, lettuce, beetroot, tomato sauce, mustard and onions). Several different animals pollinated the flowers of the plants that produce the tomatoes, lettuce, beetroot, mustard seed, and onions. And for dessert, an endless variety of ice cream flavors, such as strawberry, chocolate and vanilla, is also the result of successful plant-animal partnerships.

Without flowers and pollinators, we would have a hard time getting enough food to survive.

Information adapted from: http://www.extension.org/pages/29464/plants-and-animals-partners-in-pollination

Pollination

Petal

SepalOvary

Ovule (becomes the seed)

Stigma

StamenAnther

Filament PistilStyle

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The animal pollinators carry the pollen in different ways. Vertebrate pollinators like birds or flying foxes carry pollen in their feathers or hair. Although invertebrates like bees and butterflies lack hair, they have something just as suitable for carrying pollen: bristles on their legs, head and other body parts.

Pollination RelayThis relay demonstrates that flowering plants rely on pollinators to pollinate flowers from various sources.

What you need• Open space e.g. schoolyard or gym

• 2 hula hoops to act as flowering plants (you could use a local crop or orchard as an example)

• 2 buckets to hold the pollen

• Tennis balls, or similar, to represent pollen (enough for one ball per student)

Set up1. Go to the playground and set up the

plants (hula-hoops) with their pollen. Hula hoops should be about 10-20 m away from where the team’s base is.

2. Place the buckets in the hula-hoops. All the pollen should be placed in the first bucket of the circuit.

3. Split your class into 2-4 relay teams. Each team is a type of pollinator e.g. birds, bees, butterflies or flying-foxes.

You can modifiy this activity by setting up more plants and pollen buckets, using a stopwatch to see how many flowers can get pollinated in 60 seconds, etc.

Relay RulesAll pollinators start and finish at their base.

ROUND 1

A pollinator from each team goes to the first plant and collects 1 grain of pollen. They run to the next plant and deposit that grain of pollen into the bucket. The pollinator runs back to base and tags the next in their team.

This represents the successful pollination of a plant. The first team to have everyone pollinate their flowers wins.

ROUND 2

Move the hula-hoops and buckets further away. Repeat the relay and see which team wins.

Pull one student out of their team. It is their job now to act as a “roaming threat” to our pollinators. They could be a natural predator (something that eats the pollinators), or they could represent an unnatural threat, like pesticides (for the insects).

The job of the “roaming threat” is to tag pollinators as they are doing their job. Once tagged they have to sit out of the relay and the next person in the team goes for their run. The team with the most pollinators at the end is the winner.

Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Pollinators

BASE

POLLEN PLANT 1

POLLEN PLANT 2

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T E Ac h E R ’S n OT E S

Many of our native wildlife species need to be able to move around to find food, water, shelter and prospective mates if they are to survive.

Rural Australia has communities that rely heavily on farming. As a result, we have changed much of the natural landscape. By making these changes we have created a giant maze for native creatures to try and find their way around.

We can help our wildlife by creating pathways through the landscape by:

• maintaining or creating corridors of vegetation (trees, shrubs and grasses),

• looking after the health of our waterways,

• revegetation

• providing safe places for wildlife to cross roads (like special wildlife culverts/tunnels under the road) and

• asking people to watch out for wildlife when driving.

If we do not provide pathways, or wildlife corridors, for native wildlife then we could be harming their chance of survival.

Sammy’s MazeThis activity supports learning about the importance of wildlife corridors in the landscape. Go through with your students some of the man-made features in the landscape that can hinder the natural movement of animals to find food, water and shelter. This activity can be followed up with discussion on what we can do to help our wildlife move through the landscape.

What you will need:• Butchers paper

• Scissors

• Pens, Pencils, Crayons or textas

• Activity sheet images

InstructionsHelp your students create a maze on a large piece of butcher’s paper to help Sammy Squirrel Glider find his way from one side of Fred’s Farm to the other. Fred has a large property and the only native vegetation on the property it at two opposing ends. Draw these two bush patches at opposite ends of the paper (see example below).

Students use the images on the activity sheet to place obstacles in Sammy’s way. Talk about how Sammy cannot move from his bush patch because of all the obstacles.

As Fred the Farmer, students then need to look at ways that Fred can help Sammy move from one side to the other. Examples include planting trees, fencing off stock.

Wildlife Corridors

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Wildlife Corridors

Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Sammy’s MazeSammy the Squirrel Glider is a small glider that spends his days in the hollows of large trees. He loves his home on the edge of Fred’s Farm.

Unfortunately Sammy and his family are having trouble finding enough food, water and shelter. He decides that they will have to move to a bigger bush patch on the other side of Fred’s Farm if his family is to survive.

Design a maze that shows how Sammy and his family can move across the farm. Use the images below to show possible obstacles they may face along the way.

Once you have put your obstacles in, think about how you can change things so that Sammy and his familiy can move safely. Use the native trees and shrubs to help create your wildlife corridors.

vegetation clearing

land disturbance

powerlines

native bushland

houses & other buildings

rubbish

cropsgrazing

feral animals

vehicles & roads

fences

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i n F O R M AT i O n S h E E T

What is a weed?A weed is any plant that is growing where it is not wanted, often out-competing native local species. Weeds are also known as invasive plants. Many plants introduced into Australia in the last 200 years are now weeds.

Weeds typically produce large numbers of seeds, assisting their spread. They are often excellent at surviving and reproducing in disturbed environments and are commonly the first species to colonise and dominate in these conditions.

A weed can be an exotic species or a native species that colonises and persists in an ecosystem in which it did not previously exist. Weeds can inhabit all environments; from our towns and cities through to our farming and bushland areas.

Some weeds are of particular concern and, as a result, have been listed for priority management or in legislation.

Throughout Australia, weeds are spreading faster than they can be controlled and management of them is consuming an enormous amount of resources. Climate change poses an additional challenge to our ability to manage weeds.

Feral AnimalsFeral animals have a devastating effect on our farmland, farm animals and our native species.

The two main ways feral species have an effect on our farmland, farm animals and our native species are:

1. Predation: they hunt and eat native species and young farm animals (cats, foxes, dogs, pigs etc).

2. Competition: they compete with native species and farm animals for food or damage food sources (rabbits, deer, pigs, and goats).

Australia has a large number of small native mammals, marsupials, birds and reptiles that are particularly susceptible to feral animals. These precious creatures are extremely important to the Australian biodiversity and therefore must be protected.

PigsFeral pigs cause huge problems throughout Australia. Up to 23.5 million feral pigs are distributed throughout Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and right across Northern Australia. They are pests to both the native environment and agriculture.

Weeds and Ferals

Weed or Native QuizThis quiz will test your knowledge on what plant is a weed and what is a native. As you go through the eight comparisons think about why the plant looks like a weed or a native e.g. colour. As you go, tally up the number of times you correctly picked the weed.

http://www.envirostories.com.au/uploads/ES2012CMA/quiz.html

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i n F O R M AT i O n S h E E T

Feral pigs devastate crops and pastures by wallowing and rooting while searching for food. Being omnivores they also prey on newborn farm animals. In some areas the deaths 30-40% of newborn lambs are attributed to feral pigs.

Feral pigs are also devastating to the native Australian environment. They damage large areas of native vegetation and destroy habitats of native animals. Feral pigs also feed on small native animals. Feral pigs impact on the native environment by spreading weeds and disease.

RabbitsFeral European rabbits can be found spread right throughout Australia. Feral rabbits are nocturnal grazers that eat green grasses and herbs. They are pests to both the native environment and agriculture.

Feral Rabbits feed in direct competition with native and agricultural animals. They harm native vegetation, crops and grazing land even digging out seeds and roots of plants degrading the land.

One of the biggest problems with controlling feral rabbits is their ability to breed extremely quickly. They can breed from four months old and at any time of year. Feral rabbits can have over five litters a year, each containing as many as five kittens.

FoxesThe European red fox can be found right throughout Australia. They are mainly nocturnal hunters and prey on a wide variety of small creatures. They are pests to both the native environment and agriculture.

Feral foxes prey on poultry as well as newborn lambs and goats. They also have had an enormous environmental impact of on native animals. Populations of ground nesting birds, reptiles and small to medium sized mammals have all been dramatically affected.

GoatsFeral goats can cause major agricultural and environmental damage. They compete with domestic stock for pasture, damage fences, and reduce the profitability of pastoral and agricultural industries.

Feral goats have a major effect on native vegetation through soil damage and overgrazing of native herbs, grasses, shrubs and trees. This grazing can cause erosion and prevent regeneration. They foul waterholes and can introduce weeds through seeds carried in their dung.

More informationLearn about the impact of rabbits and cane toads at the CATCHee Hub site:http://education.brgcma.com/index.php?page=biodiversity

Check out some of the activities at Pest Tales, hosted by the Invasive Animals CRC: http://www.pestales.org.au/activities.htm

Weeds and Ferals

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1. Fill in the monthly totals for each farm on the table (rows A & B).

2. Fill in the 2 monthly totals for each farm on the table (row C).

3. One fox can kill 1 native animal per night. How many native animals were killed by foxes on each farm in month 1 (30 days)?

Fred: 5 foxes x 30 days = 150 animalsJoe: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Peter: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Stacey: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cheryl: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4. Feral pigs cause a lot of damage to crops, pasture and young livestock. How many pigs were sighted across all farms in month 2?

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

5. A pair of rabbits can produce up to 40 kittens per year. On Stacey’s Farm there are 10 rabbits containing 5 breeding pairs. How many kittens can these 5 pairs produce after 12 months? (HINT: 40 x 5)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

6. Add up the total number of rabbits found across the farms in month 2.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

If every 10 rabbits can eat as much pasture as 1 sheep, how many sheep worth of food are the rabbits eating?

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Feral animals impact crops, soils, livestock as well as our native wildlife and its habitat. Some landholders were recently asked to report sightings of feral animals on their farms over a period of 2 months. The following data was reported at these farms:

Feral Animals Fred’s Farm Joe’s Farm Peter’s Farm Stacey’s Farm Cheryl’s Farm

Mo

nth

1

Foxes 5 6 4 1 8

Pigs 7 0 2 3 0

Rabbits 15 20 18 10 30

TOTAL A

Mo

nth

2

Foxes 8 5 7 2 12

Pigs 10 2 8 4 1

Rabbits 18 23 14 16 23

TOTAL B

TOTAL C (A+B)

Ferals on the farm

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Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

Wildlife on the FarmColour in this drawing of a farm. Have a close look at the differences are between Paddock 1 and Paddock 2? Paddock 1 is overrun with rabbits, there is no food for the cows, there are no trees and the soil is eroding. Paddock 2 has trees, native wildlife and the cows are healthy and happy.

SOURcE: The green kit and caboodle by greening Australia

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T E Ac h E R ’S n OT E S

A great way to be involved in caring for the environment at your home or school is to start composting. Composting involves the decomposition (break-down) of organic waste like food scraps and garden waste.

All living things have precious nutrients and minerals within them. When they decompose, with the assistance of worms and microbes, these nutrients and minerals are released. We can collect this decomposed organic waste and recycle it back into our gardens.

Once plants have grown and produced all they can for our consumption, then we can compost them and recycle them back through the soil.

BOOK: “compost Stew” by Mary McKenna Siddals

Compost on the FarmYou can also use compost at a farm scale. Current options are:

• Vermicomposting - use of composting worms

• Passive composting - slow degradation of plant wastes, such as adding mulch to soil

• Thermophilic composting - rapid breakdown of organic material where the compost pile gets hot

Your very own compost binChoose a site at your school or home where you are allowed to set up a compost bin.

The bin can be made out of anything as long as it will allow oxygen in to help the decomposition. Mesh wire or old wooden pellets could be used (see photos). There are also a wide range of commercially produced compost bins available at hardware stores and gardening centres.

Layer your compost bin with soil, manure (e.g. from sheep, cows or chickens), dry leaves, shredded paper and food scraps. Keep moist and turn regularly. If you can, put a cover over your bin like an old bit of carpet or hessian bag. This stops it from drying out and allows the invertebrates, like worms, and bacteria to work their magic.

Resource: Lunch Munchers Education Kithttp://education.brgcma.com/index.php?page=gardens

Photos: Wooden Pallet compost bin (right), Wire and Cardboard compost bin (below)

gardening Australia’s Easy compost Bin Fact Sheethttp://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s2589153.htm

Composting your organics

VEGGIES GROW HEALTHY

VEGGIE SCRAPS GO TO COMPOST

WE PICK AND EAT VEGGIES

MAKE A VEGGIE PATCH

COMPOST

NUTIRENT RICH SOIL

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Ac T i v i T y S h E E T

The classroom garden1. First you will need some seedling pots.

Try and recycle old containers, like cans, poppers or yogurt tubs. Make sure they are clean. Any container is fine as long as it is about at least 7 cm deep. Even old toilet rolls can be used.

Seedling pots can also be purchased from your local nursery.

2. Your containers must have good drainage to make sure you grow strong healthy seedlings. Carefully, with the guidance of your teacher, use scissors or wire to poke holes in the bottom of the containers.

3. Prepare your soil by making sure it slightly damp. For best results use a good quality potting mix with lots of organic material. You can also use seed raising mix.

4. Fill your containers up to 2 cm below the top with the soil/potting mix and press down slightly.

5. Sprinkle seeds into your pots and cover with twice the width of the seed of soil. This may vary depending on the type of seed, check the seed packet for instructions. Press down on the soil to make sure there is good contact between seed and soil.

6. Place the pots on a drainage tray and place in near a window or where the pots will get sunshine.

7. You will need to lightly water them over the coming weeks. Too much water will cause the seeds to become mouldy. It is a good idea to use a hand-held water sprayer to mist the top of the containers everyday.

8. Once your seeds start growing you will be able to monitor how much water they are getting (i.e. a dry seedling needs more water).

9. When your seedling are the same height (or more) above the soil as the depth of the soil then it is time to plant them in your garden. If you don’t have a garden bed prepared, upgrade you seedlings to a larger pot.

10. When you classroom garden is established enough you will be able to pick and eat your produce. Try this at home!

Gardening Australia’s On the Verge Projecthttp://www.abc.net.au/gardening/ontheverge/

Get GardeningWe can better understand where our food comes from if we grow it ourselves. It can be fun, and tasty! We can all take measures around our own homes to be more sustainable and grow our own food - it saves money and you get fresh produce you can eat. A two or three dollar packet of seeds can grow a large number of plants for your vegetable garden.

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Further InformationCentral West Catchment Management Authority www.cw.cma.nsw.gov.au

Border Rivers-Gwydir Catchment Management Authority www.brg.cma.nsw.gov.au

Cotton Catchment Communities CRC www.cottoncrc.org.au

Australian Year of the Farmer www.yearofthefarmer.com.au

National Year of Reading www.love2read.org.au

PrimeZone www.primezone.edu.au

LandLearn NSW www.landlearnnsw.org.au

PestTales www.pestales.org.au/activities.htm

FeralScan www.feralscan.org.au

Lunch Munchers Education Kit education.brgcma.com/index.php?page=gardens

Gardening Australia www.abc.net.au/gardening/

Fresh from the world...Where your food comes from urbanext.illinois.edu/food/

Natural Plant and Animal Fibres www.binhaitimes.com

Go Grains Everyday www.glnc.org.au/resources/education-resources/

Workboot Series www.bookstore.kondiningroup.com.au

Photo courtesy of Border Rivers-gwydir cMA Photo courtesy of Border Rivers-gwydir cMA