BEFORE YOUR VISIT Inquisitive Students Want to Know:

What is a botanic garden? What will we see? A botanic garden is a collection of plants. Think of it as a living plant museum. Some plants have metal signs next to them. These are labels with the common name and the scientific name (or Botanical Name). The Memphis Botanic Garden is a Level IV arboretum with over 140 different species of trees. Some trees are numbered for identification. The horticulture staff maintains the health and keeps records of this incredible collection located on 96 acres. Included are many specialty gardens and My Big Backyard family garden. http://www.memphisbotanicgarden.com/thegardens

May we walk on the grass and pick flowers to bring home? GARDEN MANNERS: Do not step in planted beds or pick flowers, leaves, plants, or fruits. You may walk through the woodlands to go from The Americas tent to Asia, India, and Africa. Stay on paths in the Wildflower Woodland. Students must travel with their adult leaders at all times. Please carefully supervise students while visiting our Herb Garden. It is a global garden that represents herbal traditions from around the world. Our Herb Garden serves as a testing ground to see which herbs will thrive in the Mid-South. Help keep our garden tidy. Trash boxes are available throughout the garden.

Where in the world are we? Examine world maps, a globe, and an atlas. http://www.worldatlas.com Point out the continents, the equator, and the Northern and Southern hemispheres. Five of the seven continents will be included as you visit the global tents at World of Plants.

What is the weather like in different parts of our world? Choose cities on each continent. Mark them on a world map. Record the daily weather. Compare and contrast to our local weather. Find temperatures by checking newspapers. The New York Times has international temperature listings. Your local paper may also have listings. Introduce temperatures on the Celsius/centigrade scale. http://m.accuweather.com/en/world-weather

What day is it on the other side of our planet? Show a calendar and map. Discuss the International Date Line.

Are children in other parts of the world sleeping right now? Use a world map and clocks to investigate time zones.

How many languages are spoken in the world? There are 6,909 distinct languages.

This book may be available in your school library: Children Just Like Me: A Unique Celebration of Children Around the World by Barnabas & Anabel Kindersley. It is organized by continents and introduces international children by giving their names and showing photographs. Included are pictures of food, housing, schools, and games they play.

DURING YOUR VISIT Students will experience:

Make a BOTANICAL CONNECTION

23 countries

This famous bubbly drink, concocted by Charles Hires, is flavored with sassafras. Other spices are often added: anise, cinnamon, dandelion root, ginger, juniper, vanilla, and wintergreen.

Native American tribal nations such as: Cherokee, Chippewa, Choctaw, Creek, Iroquois, Mohegan, Nanticoke, Rappahannock, and Seminole, introduced Spanish explorers to the power of the sassafras tree. The roots and bark were used as a remedy for fever and rheumatism. Filé (fee-lay), an important spice in Cajun foods such as gumbo, is made from dried and crushed sassafras leaves. Filé is used to thicken and add flavor to foods and soups. Sassafras trees grow throughout our Wildflower Woodland. Look for the three shapes of leaves.

Memphis is called the “hub of the Mid-South”. The Mid-South region is West Tennessee, West Kentucky, MEMPHIS North Mississippi, East Arkansas, Southeast Missouri, and part of Alabama’s Tennessee River Valley.

The number 901 is used to promote Memphis. Area code 901 was originally assigned to the whole state of Tennessee but now covers Memphis and some surrounding cities.

Celebrate Memphis and the history of the Memphis Botanic Garden. In 1961 a group of gardeners rescued wildflowers that would have been destroyed during highway construction. They received permission to dig up those flowers and plant them in an area that is now known as the Memphis Botanic Garden. To commemorate Memphis and our Wildflower Woodland, students plant wildflowers seeds in small flowerpots to take home. See the descendants of the rescued wildflowers. They are growing in our Wildflower Woodland. 12 countries

Students draw colorful designs on miniature maracas. Learn how a gourd becomes a musical instrument valued by musicians of Cuba, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, Jamaica, and Brazil. See a real dried gourd. Listen to the seeds inside. Shake! Shake! Shake! Musical instruments are divided into groups depending on how the sound is produced. What makes the sound inside maracas? Beans, beads, or stones bounce and bump. Maracas are part of the percussion family, being idiophones that are shaken. Some idiophones, such as cymbals, castanets, and xylophones, are struck instead of shaken. The name maraca is thought to be from the Araucanian people of central Chile. Maracas were used by pre-Columbian Indians, especially the tribes in Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, and Paraguay. For centuries, vine-growing gourds have also been used as jugs, bowls, and water dippers, i.e. the drinking gourd.

Make a BOTANICAL CONNECTION 47 countries

Pass the croutons, please! Students dip this wheat product into tasty pasta sauce. Take a look at fruits, vegetables, and herbs that are ingredients of this popular red topping.

Examine pasta shapes and learn the names of the most popular ones. From wheat to flour to pasta, it all begins with the grain of cereal grass. Out in the field, a farmer tugs on a head of wheat, rubs it, blows away the chaff, and chews on the grain. If the kernel cracks easily, harvest begins. A kernel is the wheat seed. There are about 50 kernels in a head of wheat. Bran is the outer layer of the kernel and wheat germ is on the inside. Whole Grains contain all parts of the kernel. Cracked wheat is the kernel broken into small pieces.

So sweet! So floral! Oh, that smells so good! Perfume has been made in France since the 16th century. It became a major business in the 1920’s when the great fashion designers of Paris began to promote fragrances that carried their names. Five flowers are important to the perfume industry: roses, lavender, jasmine, mimosa, and iris. The iris is valued for its rhizomes. When rhizomes are dried and powdered, it is called orris root. This is used as a fixative so fragrances last longer.

Students carry home a gift of fragrance to remember that flowers are an important ingredient in scented items we use every day. All parts of a plant may be used to make perfume. This includes the flowers, fruit, leaves, bark, wood, roots, and sap. A combination of natural ingredients, such as essential oils from plants, and synthetic scents are used today. Natural ingredients are costly, so a much less expensive range of fragrances is made with artificial substances. Fragrant products are used by both males and females. Ask students to think of all the scented items they come in contact with on a daily basis. Do those scents remind them of something from the garden? We invite you to visit our Rose Garden, Iris Garden, and Fragrance Garden.

Tap, Tap! Clop, Clop! The rhythmic sound of wooden shoes! Examine a real wooden shoe and imagine wearing these every day. Poplar wood is carved to form these familiar clogs. They are comfortable, warm, and strong which makes them excellent safety boots for Dutch farmers. Tulip Poplar, yellow poplar, is the Tennessee State Tree. There are many types of poplars. For wooden shoe souvenirs, we use lightweight balsa wood cut-outs and attach a magnet to the back. Students create a design to remind them of their visit to the land of tulips and windmills. Tulips bloom in Holland from late April through the middle of May.

Make a BOTANICAL CONNECTION 44 countries See our Asian Garden plants from East Asian countries, mainly China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Southern Himalayas.

Have a seat in our Japanese Garden of Tranquility, Seijaku-En. Lift that cup of green tea and take a sip. Think of the plant, Camellia sinensis, that gives up its leaves for our drinking pleasure.

In Japan, to enhance the flavor of the leaf, tea is often mixed with aromatic flowers, such as jasmine. By participating in a Tea Ceremony, students will learn how the Japanese celebrate their love of tea. Tea was introduced to Japan by the Chinese in the early 9th century. Asians were successful in converting the British from coffee lovers to tea lovers in the 17th century. In the southern part of the United States, iced tea is a very popular drink.

Slowly, patiently, the brush with a bamboo handle dips into black ink and spreads delicate shapes across paper. Calligraphy means “beautiful writing.” In China, it is an art form as well as a writing style. Students dip the tips of brushes into the ink and create art as they use this beautiful Chinese writing to decorate paper paddle fans. Paper was invented in China, yet paper fans are of Japanese origin. The most common paper fans are folding fans. Rigid paddle fans have wooden or bamboo handles. Fans are an important part of the traditional dances of Japan and China. Each student will dance away with a special, personal, Chinese fan souvenir.

Symbols are stamped onto paper to design a unique Vietnamese hat. Wearing it will remind students of the rice paddies in Vietnam. Rice harvest is a very busy time for the Vietnamese people. After rice grains are separated from the stalk, some stalks are set aside to make nón lá, the traditional conical hat of the Vietnamese. Stalks are twisted into braids, wound into a spiral, and sewn. Nón lá hats are usually neutral in color and have painted or woven designs. Many people wear nón lá hats while working in paddy fields.

Make a BOTANICAL CONNECTION

India is a country with 28 states. It is located in the southern part of Asia.

Students take a sniff and use their sense of smell. Is this scent familiar? Does it remind them of a food they may have eaten? Spices are seasonings that come from the bark, buds, fruit or flower parts, roots, seeds or stems of various aromatic plants and trees. Long ago, spices were prized for their preservative and medicinal qualities. Today, dried spices are used primarily for their taste and aroma in cooking, and for their digestive properties. Fresh mint leaves are crushed and stirred into lemonade to create a tasty drink for students. Herbs are the leafy parts of plants. There are several varieties of mint in our Herb Garden.

See the shades and shapes. Rangoli is a traditional floor art used to decorate entry ways of Indian homes. It is a welcome to goddesses and guests during a variety of festivals. Grains, flowers, colored rice, sand, and rice powders are used to make designs varying from themes of nature, such as flowers and peacocks, to complex geometric patterns. Rangoli is practiced all over India. Students carry away their own colorful rangoli designs. Perhaps they will place their artwork on the floor in a doorway to welcome family and friends.

What does a child of India wear? A display shows some of the clothing. Feel the material. Students move behind the display to see how they look in Indian clothes. The sari is a favorite dress of females. Around their waist they wrap a piece of fabric that is about six yards long. It hangs to their feet and they throw the loose end over their left shoulder. Some wear blouses under their sari. Sari, in Sanskrit, means cloth. Males may wear long tunics with trousers underneath. Many villages have their own special textile designs. Silk and cotton are two important textiles. Most commercial silk comes from cocoons that protect the pupae of mulberry silkworm moths. What many people refer to as “silkworms” are actually caterpillars that spin the cocoons. Archaeologists believed the first cultivated cotton was grown in India though cotton has grown wild for hundreds of years. Western Tennessee, eastern Arkansas, and Mississippi are located in a region known as the Cotton Belt. Look for cotton growing in our Delta Heritage Garden.

Make a BOTANICAL CONNECTION 54 countries

Many languages are spoken in Kenya and people are grouped into three linguistic classifications: the Bantus, the Cushites, and the Nilotes. These three groups are divided into 42 tribes.

How you live in Kenya is determined by whether you are part of a tribe that farms or a tribe that herds.

The Bantus are farmers that grow coffee, tea, maize, beans, rice, and sugar. The Cushites are nomadic. They move from place to place herding cattle, camels, goats, and sheep. Many Nilotes are both farmers and nomadic herders. Some even fish and hunt. The well-known Maassai are part of this group and they are nomadic herders. Each tribe has its own special history and cultural traditions. Tribal masks are an important part of social and religious life in Kenya. They are used during traditional ceremonies.

Students assemble a tribal mask using natural materials found on the continent: coffee grounds, raffia, and native grains. Bright colors are used to represent the African soil. Students look through the masks and perhaps see a little more clearly the lives of Kenya’s tribal people.

Do coconuts and bananas grow on trees? We should really call them giant plants! Enjoy an educational walk through our Tropical Conservatory and see which botanical wonders thrive in a rainforest. Why does it feel so wet in here? Humidity! Does it really rain every day in the tropical rainforest? Oh, yes, as much as 400 inches a year! Look! Bromeliads, aloe, ferns, papyrus, ginger, banana! Most of these plants have adapted to their environment by developing leaves with drip tips or a waxy coating to protect them from the rain. This wet garden does indeed grow very green!

Mmm, chocolate, coconut, and banana. Oh, my! What a tasty treat, brought to us by the tropical plants of central Africa. Tropical fruits are plentiful in the rainforest. There are also mangoes, oranges, pineapples, pears, and papayas. Is there really a chocolate tree? Did I hear something about chocolate beans? Wow! Cacao! (ka-kow)

AFTER YOUR VISIT Inquisitive Students Want to Know:

Why are plants important to us? Make a botanical connection in your classroom to show relevance in our daily life. Challenge students to determine the botanical origins of objects around them. If these objects are from another country, locate that country on a map. Investigate plants from around the world.

May we grow our own World of Plants? Plant a garden at your school. Grow plants in your classroom. Investigate taxonomy. Discover the common and scientific names of your plants. Use recycled materials to make pollinator plant stakes or add decoration to plant beds.

Can we visit the Memphis Botanic Garden again? Please check out our classes. http://www.memphisbotanicgarden.com/youthgroupprograms

Will someone from the Memphis Botanic Garden come to our school or community center? Some programs may be brought to you. http://www.memphisbotanicgarden.com/outreachgrades1-6

Request World Candy Explorations! Our World Explorer travels with sweet treats and a presentation that investigates their plant origins. http://www.memphisbotanicgarden.com/mybotanicplanet

Do you know someone that was born outside of the United States? Invite visits from parents, grandparents, or friends that lived or grew up abroad. Ask them to share photos, clothes, music, and stories. Investigate foods from that country. Speak a language other than English. Teach students some words or phrases. Examine alphabets. Compare words written in Japanese, Vietnamese, and Chinese. Check your library for international stories. Fairytales/Folklore is located at 398-398.8 under the Dewey Decimal System. Research what it means to be a naturalized citizen. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services http://www.uscis.gov/us-citizenship/citizenship-through-naturalization