Nature in Camping 9 



and nailing them together. Gather plants or herbs that are edible or might 

 be used for medicinal purposes to place them on the shelves. Be sure they 

 ate well labeled, giving name, use, and other information you can find. 

 Keep in mind that in a real pantry things that are used very little are placed 

 on the top shelves, the perishable ones are on the middle ones where they 

 are easy to reach and the dried herbs underneath. If berries or other perish- 

 able plants are used, be sure to change them often so they will not attract 

 insects. 



Fernery 



A fernery is made by transplanting ferns that are found in the neighbor- 

 hood in one corner of the museum, preferably near a stream. Dig up the 

 ferns carefully, leaving the roots covered with earth and replant -them as 

 quickly as possible. Small paths made of stones should lead through the 

 fernery so visitors will not step on the ferns. Each species of fern should 

 be well labeled, giving the name of the fern, its habitat, range, etc. Poems 

 about ferns could be printed on cardboard in India ink and shellacked. 



Zoo 



Since it is against the law in many states to cage animals and the proper 

 care of them is a real problem, why not build a zoo that will take care of 

 itself? The Museum of Natural History has a display of wild animals that 

 were stuffed and placed in their natural setting. The same plan might be 

 used in making a zoo for your outdoor museum. Get a number of wooden 

 packing boxes and paint them green if you can; otherwise leave them plain. 

 Draw the animals that frequent your camp site on cardboard, cut them 

 out and paint them. Cover them with white shellac so they will be water- 

 proof. The inside of the box should be painted to show the natural setting 

 of the animal; that is, the frog should be near the water, the chip-munk in 

 the woods. Other studies are possible of the food they eat with samples 

 placed in the box. A list of enemies or any other information could be 

 tacked on the outside. Somewhere in the zoo have posters telling how to 

 handle different animals, their use, games, laws. 



