2. Pals & Pests in the Garden

2. Pals & Pests in the Garden

In this session we will investigate the kinds of animals and insects we can find in the garden, how they interact with each other, how we interact with them and how they relate to our goals in the garden.

Look out for focus questions and activity ideas throughout this session that may help you explore, discover and learn more on your own.

There is also an additional companion session programme that you may view and download by clicking the button below.

S2: Pals & Pests in the Garden (ver1.0)

Click the button on the left to access the PDF for a session outline and activity set that accompanies this section.

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Objectives

Students will identify and describe the meaning of a weed

Students will identify and describe the meaning of beneficial, non-beneficial, predator, prey and how these relate to the garden and each other

Students will use critical thinking, creative language, science concepts and mathematics to describe and relate living organisms and natural processes to the goals and expectations of cultivating a garden

Students will demonstrate how to undertake a basic biological survey, or BioBlitz

Overview

I. What is a weed?
A) The Good, the Bad and the Garden
B) What's in a place?
C) What kind of plant?

Key Words

Activity Ideas

I. What is a weed?

In this section, we will look at what it means for a plant to be a weed. But first, let's think about what we already know about weeds.

What do you know about weeds?

What plants can you think of that are considered weeds?

Now, can you identify anything that these plants have in common that you that might help us better understand what makes a plant a weed? Can any plant be a weed? Are some plants always weeds or some plants never weeds? What aspects and evidence are you using to make your judgments?

A. The Good, the Bad and the Garden

In nature, there is no such things as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ plants. Every ecosystem is made up of living organisms that both work together and against each other to survive. Rather than definite heroes and villains of the environment, we determine whether a plant, animal or insect is a 'goody' or a baddie' depending on their relationship to our goals as gardeners.

A weed = a plant growing where it is not wanted

So by this definition, we know that a weed is any plant that we find is not suited to the place where it is growing.

It is important to be aware of our goals for a space and how each plant contributes or takes away from these goals. Consider:

> What are your goals and expectations for a place?

> Does the plant support the success of these goals? How?

> Does the plant harm or prevent the achievement of these goals? How?

Let's look at a few examples to get a better understanding of how to recognise our goals for a space and how we can think about a plant's relationship to those goals.

B. What's in a place?

Let's consider some examples of common and familiar settings, how we use these spaces and what we expect from these places when we are in or away from them.

-What are our goals and expectations for these spaces?

-How do we manage these spaces to support our goals and meet our expectations?

Forest

...

Garden

...

Yard

...

Indoors

...

C. What kind of plant?

Next let's consider some examples of common and familiar plants, what these plants need and how they grow and affect their environment.

-What are some basic needs and characteristics of each plant?

-How do we manage these plants to meet their needs and accommodate their characteristics?

Kauri Tree

...

Tomato Plant

...

Grass

...

Sweet Basil

...

Now take a moment and compare how each plant matches with each place.

How do the characteristics, needs and role of the plant suit the goals of each place?