Your chance to adopt your own bulbs and take part in an environmental

science project.

Spring Bulbs for Schools!

Hello!

I’m Professor Plant!

I work at Amgueddfa Cymru –National Museum Wales, in Cardiff. I study plants and nature in the botanical section of the museum.

I am writing to ask if you can help me with an important nature investigation…

A letter from Professor Plant

Nature’s clocks have gone strange!

Flowers are opening earlier

Leaves on trees are opening earlier

Insects like bees are sometimes seen all year

around

Birds such as the swallow are arriving in the UK earlier each

year.

But why…

Temperatures are changing!Our world is heating up! Scientists say that our climate is changing and that pollution is to blame.

It is Climate change that is causing our seasons to change and nature’s clocks to go strange.

How could temperature changes affect nature?

• Look at this food chain. How could this food chain be affected if the caterpillar grew up and flew away before the chick was born?

Oak leaf Winter moth caterpillar Blue tit chick

Records gathered over the last 200 years tell us that spring is getting earlier!

People have studied plants and animals for a long time.

Early hunters had to know when herds of animals were passing by and farmers need to know when to gather their crops.

Today, records are kept in museums, botanical gardens and universities.

You can keep records too visit http://www.naturedetectives.org.uk/ to find out more!

Hunting and fishing settlement 9,000 years ago.

Spring bulbs are great tools for measuring changes in our

seasons because they are very sensitive to changes in

temperature.

If we have a cold spring, flowers open late and if we have a warm spring, flowers grow and open earlier.

Daffodils on the 1st of February (1917-1926)

Can you grow your own daffodil and crocus bulbs and record when they open?

Can you help?

Can you keep weather charts and post them on the web?

Online weather chart Online flowering map –

showing which flowers have opened in which schools

Since October 2005, super scientists across Wales have been keeping weather records and noting when their flowers open, as part of a long-term study looking at the effects of temperature on spring bulbs.

Become a Super Scientist!

You will receive your own pot and bulbs and work towards a Super Scientist Certificate!

+ gain the chance to win a nature-activity trip for your class!

If you can help…

Please get involved!

• If you want to help I will arrange for my plant-pals to send you your bulbs so you can help me with this fun but important investigation.

Yours sincerely,

Professor Plant.