Many animals hibernate this time of year, and while plants don’t hibernate exactly, many of them do go dormant which is similar. We observe a “Hibernation Celebration” each year in December as school winds down and we prepare for our quiet period of sorts. This year we made these sweet little seed bears with seeds tucked inside sleeping away the winter and waiting for spring. We chose seeds that are food for or have value to small mammals so that they wouldn’t just look like sleeping animals, but actually help animals! I couldn’t find a sleeping bear mold so we made these by hand which is time consuming, but feels right for this sleepy season. You could also try using bee friendly plants with a bee mold or swampy loving plants in a frog mold! (I was able to find both molds and both hibernate!) Make sure that if you use a prepackaged pollinator type seed mix that it has seeds native to your area, they are notorious for sneaking in plants that cause problems.
Materials:
- natural clay or air dry clay
- native seeds that support insects, birds and animals in your area (I used goldenrod, new england aster and jewelweed because they support a variety of insects and small mammals and are hearty.)
- potting soil
Method:
Mix a pinch of your seeds with a bit of potting soil. Encase them in a small ball of clay.
Add some more clay on to form the body, head and legs of the bear. I like to make the bear curled up like it’s sleeping. Draw fur texture and closed eyes with a toothpick.
Let your seed bears dry completely and then tuck them someplace snug outdoors where the seeds they contain will be happy. Native seeds typically need what is called “cold stratification” which means they need a period of cold before they can germinate and grow in the spring. This means putting your bear outside now will help it be ready to grow in the spring!
Happy Hibernating!