Kids A Scavenger Hunt for Kids CONCORD TREASURES:
and animals native to our area. To set off on your scavenger hunt, take a paper bag or small box to collect your treasures. A clipboard with paper and pencil for notes is always useful, and binoculars or a magnifying glass will bring nature to life in an entirely new way.
Commons.wikimedia.org/Msact
Commons.wikimedia.org/sterlingherron
Spring and summer beckon us outdoors — especially kids, and their natural curiosity is the perfect springboard for a scavenger hunt. Whether you’re out and about in Walden Woods, Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, or your own backyard, you can see plants
Butterfly weed
3 American elm tree (Ulmus americana)
3 Hemlock tree
The American elm tree was adopted as Massachusetts’ official tree on March 21, 1941, to commemorate the fact that General George Washington took command of the Continental Army beneath one of these stately trees on Cambridge Common in 1775.
The Eastern Hemlock is the only hemlock native to our state. It’s evergreen, so its short, thick needles don’t fall off all at once in the fall. Under the right conditions, an Eastern Hemlock can grow up to 100’ tall and live for more than 500 years!
©Samuel Brinker, inaturalist.org, photo 60841461
©Malcolm Manners, inaturalist.org, photo 8042769
(Tsuga canadensis)
3 Mayflower
(Epigaea repens)
The mayflower is the state flower of Massachusetts and likes moist, shady areas. It’s a lovely plant, but don’t disturb it — digging one up in MA is punishable with a $50 fine!
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3 Mountain Laurel
(Kalmia latifolia)
Mountain laurel is one of our most beautiful flowering shrubs. It blooms in May and June with unusual hexagonal or pentagonal-shaped flowers in shades of white and light pink. Be careful, though. All parts of mountain laurel are poisonous.
