Grow a Surprise Garden!

Did you know that you can pick up seeds on your shoes while taking a walk outside?  After a rainy day, mud from the ground that has stuck to your shoes can store all kinds of seeds.  In this activity, you will collect the mud from your shoes to grow a garden and find out what kind of seeds you picked up!  Surprise!

What you need:

• Rainy day
• Shoes (preferably sneakers)
• Empty container
• Water
• Potting soil
• Clear plastic
• Warm area

What to do:

1. Wait for a rainy day.

2. After it is done raining, put on your sneakers and take a walk around any area that is muddy.

3. After your muddy walk and before heading inside, scrape all of the mud off your shoes and into your empty container.

4. Add water to your mud to make it runny.  Set aside overnight.

5. Add your potting soil to the mixture the next day.

6. Cover your empty container with clear plastic and place in a warm area.

7. Keep an eye on your soil and watch for plants to grow within a couple of weeks!  As the plants get bigger, you can add them to bigger pots or place them outside in a garden.

8. Research what kind of plants have grown! Can you identify them?

Activity inspired by the U.S. Forest Service. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.