#12 How to clone pig face (plant)

I am impatient. After such a long stretch of being inside I can not wait to go outside and enjoy the fresh air and nature outside my window. I can see the first signs of spring through that window. Native birds like the beautiful black raven, the jolly wattlebird and our laughing kookaburras are building nests for the eggs they will soon lay, whilst honey bees are taking nectar and pollen from the bright yellow wattles that are blooming everywhere. After a long winter, it’s time to grow some plants. But how, you may ask? Seeds will take too long with spring starting just next week, and all the nurseries are still closed. But there is another way: did you know that many plants can be cloned by taking a simple cutting? I am going to show you how! For my cloning experiment, I have chosen a very special plant with a very funny name: pig face! Pig face is native to Australia and that means it is well adapted to our environment and weather. It is very hardy and can withstand our harsh sun and little rain over summer without any trouble. But there’s more! Pig face is edible and in late summer it bears sweet fruit and when the petals have dropped from it, the pulp and seeds can be sucked out, tasting a bit like salty apple. Aboriginal people have long used the leaves as a salty side dish to cooked meats. The juice from the leaves can also be used to relieve insect bites. Sounds amazing? I know! So let’s get started, first we need to watch Mr Beck's video to find out what pig face looks like. Then we need to go for a walk and try to spot some. If you can’t find pig face, you can use another plant from the ‘succulent’ family. If you spot the plant you want in someone's garden, write them a note to ask them if you can take a small cutting, about 10 cm off the tip. It will not hurt the plant and it will regrow quickly. Everything else you need to know will be explained in the video. -------------------------------------------------------- Activity: Find an old planting pot with holes in the bottom, some soil and a small cutting of a pig face plant or other succulent. Watch the video and make your own very first clone! Inquiry Question: Grade Prep: It’s about to get into spring and we are looking forward to the warmer weather. Can you describe how things are changing outside? Grade 1 and 2: It is nearly spring and many animals are starting to breed and plants are starting to grow. Can you name a few? Grade 3: Australia is the driest place on earth. Can you think of ways how native Australian plants have adapted to our climate? Grade 4: When John Batman’s party landed in Victoria in June 1835, the explorers took sketches of aboriginal women on extensives terraced farms cultivating yam daisy tubers, one of the staples of aboriginal diet back in those days. What impression does this scenery of aboriginal culture give you? What could you have learned from the women? Grade 5/6: Imagine you want to start a business selling native Australian food plants unique to this continent and cultivated by aboriginal Australians as far back as 60.000 years. They have unique flavours and are found nowhere else in the world. How would you market them to your customers? You choose to sell pig face to kickstart your business. How would you grow your product time and cost efficiently? Provide at least three reasons why you choose this way of cultivation.