Samples of indoor holiday decorations.

Why not start a family tradition by making home-made holiday decorations with materials you can collect outdoors. Two free workshops in December will teach you how to do that.

There's a Holiday Decorating with Nature workshop on Wednesday, Dec. 12, at the Soulard Outdoor Teacher Resource Center. The hands-on workshop will be from 5:30-7:30 p.m. The Soulard Center is located at 1926 S. 12th St. near downtown St. Louis.

Then, on Tuesday, Dec, 18, there is a Holiday Wreath Making workshop at the Rockwoods Reservation in west St. Louis County. That hands-on session will be from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

One thing: Be sure to call early for reservations because the number of spots open are limited. To sign up for the Soulard workshop, call (314) 231-3803. For the Rockwoods session, call (636) 458-2236.

(For other nature ideas, see sidebar below)

When you attend either workshop, all the natural materials needed to make the decorations will be provided. These workshops are sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation.

Barb Sandhagen from the Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center will lead the Soulard workshop. She will be assisted by Liz Lyon from the Soulard center.

Sandhagen said her workshop will focus on making two types of decorations. One is a Crafty Log piece which will look good as a table or fireplace mantle centerpiece. The other is a Pine Cone Christmas Tree that would go well as a tree ornament.

She said, "We'll be using materials that could be gathered in your backyard or on a wooded acreage." However, she cautioned that collecting items from state or county park lands isn't permitted.

Also, she said you should look for bark that has been shed or is on a dead tree. She urges not to cut bark off of live trees. "That's the tree's skin," she said.

The decorations at the workshop will be made from tree bark, greenery, pine cones and wild berries. There will be "cool" glue guns available to attach different pieces. "However, if you didn't have a glue gun at home, Elmer's glue will work also," Sandhagen said.

She added, "You don't have to be a fancy artist to make these decorations. You're limited only by your imagination."

She said, once a family tradition of making decorations is set, kids can collect material throughout the year. For instance, you might find a piece of wood, a sea shell or a special rock while on a summer vacation. If that is put into a decoration, it will be a reminder of that vacation.

You could save the decorations from one year to another. Each will have a special memory.

One caution from Sandhagen: Don't use candles or Christmas lights on these decorations. The heat or flame might cause the dry materials to burst into flame.

Different wreath shapes, ready for decoration.

Tom Meister is the interpretive programs supervisor at the Rockwoods Reservation. He will supervise the wreath-making workshop.

The wreaths to be made at the Dec. 18 workshop have a double purpose. First, they provide outdoor decoration for your home. But, the wreath decorations also include food "goodies" and serve as bird feeders.

Kids at the workshop will start with a wreath made of grape vines. They already will be tied into the wreath shapes. Then, the people at the workshop will attach different decorative items to complete the holiday theme.

Included in the decoration will be suet bags and tiny clay pots. The pots can be filled with a peanut butter and sunflower seed mixture that birds like.

Meister said the bird-feeder wreaths should be hung from trees or maybe a gas-light fixture in the yard. "Don't hang the wreath on the front door unless you want the birds to come knocking on your door," he said.

For more about interesting Department of Conservation activities and facilities, why not check in at www.conservation.state.mo.us and click on the St. Louis Region header.

 

Special "Discovery Trunks" for conservation classes The Missouri Department of Conservation has developed special "Conservation Education Discovery Trunks" for use in classes about the outdoors. Special trunks filled with materials and lesson plans have been developed for 10 different outdoor topics. Why don't you suggest to your teacher that you'd like to learn about some of these topics. Only teachers can obtain the trunks. These are available through the Busch Conservation Area (636) 441-4554, the Powder Valley Nature Center (314) 301-1500, the Rockwoods Reservation (636) 458-2236 or the Soulard Outdoor Teacher Resource Center (314) 231-3803. The 10 different trunks include: Wetlands Discovery Trunk Urban Nature Discovery Trunk Project Learning Tree Discovery Trunk Insect Discovery Trunk Mammals Discovery Trunk Coyote Discovery Trunk Beaver Discovery Trunk Birds Discovery Trunk Reptiles Discovery Trunk Zebra Mussel Mania Discovery Trunk