Grow Your Own Kansas Crop Monster
Want a fun activity for your kids? Have them grow their very own crop monster! The monster will grow grass as hair, teaching kids about seed germination, growth and plant root structures. All of these things come into play on farms when farmers grow cover crops to protect their soil between seasons for other crops.
Materials You'll Need
- Short nylon hose
- Condiment cup
- Untreated grass seed
- Potting soil
- Jiggle eyes (glued to the end of tack nails)
- Small rubber bands
Instructions
- Place some grass seeds in the toe of the short nylon hose where you want the grass to grow. The toe of the nylon will be the top of the head for your monster.
- Pack a handful of soil (roughly a cup to 1 1/2 cups) in the nylon on top of the grass seeds. The soil in the nylon will form a ball. Add enough soil so that the ball of soil is slightly larger than the mouth of the cup, so it can sit on top of the cup.
- Tie a knot in the hose under the ball of soil.
- Make a face on your monster using rubber bands and jiggle eyes. Make it your own by adding a nose and ears, then placing your eyes in the monster.
- Place the string of nylon below the knot in a cup with water, ensuring the head is above the lip of the cup. The string of the nylon will absorb the water to feed the grass seeds, which will germinate inside the nylon and then begin to shoot growth through the nylon to form the hair of the monster.
- Watch the monster's hair grow! See how it changes over a week. You can even chart the growth.
This activity was provided courtesy of Kansas Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom. For more fun and educational activities and resources, visit their website.
More Fun Ideas for Kids
