School is in Session - Part 1 Flora, by Ladybug

Instead of going to school, I went backpacking with my Dad and some friends to learn about nature and Indian ruins, especially Anasazi ruins.  These are some of the plants that we saw and I learned the names for.

I didn't expect to see aspens in the middle of the desert.

This juniper tree was the biggest that I have ever seen.  It must have been hundreds of years old.

There were many of these cacti on the trail.  We had to watch out not to step on them.  Ouch!

This tree really wanted to reach for the sky.  It was very tough to grow.

The willows grew large and in many shapes.  They were great for climbing.

This plant is mormon tea.  We didn't try to make tea. The plant  tasted yucky.

Moss grew on the rocks.  It is very soft.

Succulents were some of the first plants to come out after the winter.  Some were reddish.

The last night we camped in a shady canyon by cottonwood trees.  I almost froze in the morning until we made it to sunshine in another canyon.  It was 25-30 degrees F that night.  Brrrrr!

Some people call this snake grass, others call it straw grass.  I think it is fun to play with.

There was sagebrush there.  Just like everywhere else in Utah.

This stuff is called bio- something or other.  It has many ingredients including living organisms.  It takes hundreds of years to form.  We were careful not to walk on it.

One day it snowed huge flakes for half the day.  My feet got wet and I was cold letting the wind dry my feet.  but I was brave.  I think I learned more on this trip than I would have if I was in school.