Welcome
Hello, little plant explorer! Today we learn the most important plant rule of all.
Plants live everywhere. In your yard. In the park. Beside the sidewalk. In the woods.
Some plants are safe to touch and even tasty to eat. Some plants will give your skin an itchy rash. A few plants can make you sick.
How do you tell the difference? You learn one rule that always works!
Warm-Up
Let's Start!
Think about the last time you went outside.
The Most Important Plant Rule
Rule #1: Always Ask a Grown-Up
Here is the rule that keeps every plant explorer safe:
Never taste or touch a plant you do not know without asking a grown-up first.
Even pretty berries can be dangerous. Even soft leaves can make you itch.
When in doubt? Ask. Always. Every time. No exceptions.
Imagine You Find a Mystery Berry
You are on a walk. You see a bright red berry on a bush you have never seen before.
A Plant That Itches
Poison Ivy
Some plants in the woods have three leaves that grow together on one stem.
Plants like poison ivy and poison oak look pretty, but touching them gives most people an itchy rash that lasts for days.
Hikers learn a rhyme that keeps their hands safe:
Leaves of three? Let it be!
When you see three shiny leaves together, walk around. Do not touch. Do not pick. Tell a grown-up.
Spot the Three-Leaf Plant
You are walking on a trail. You see a small plant beside you with three shiny green leaves growing from one stem.
Safe and Yummy Plants
Food Plants Are Plants Too!
Some plants are safe and yummy to eat. Grown-ups pick them, wash them, and put them on your plate.
Apples grow on apple trees. Strawberries grow on small strawberry plants near the ground. Carrots grow under the dirt.
When food plants come from a store, a farm stand, or a garden a grown-up cares for, they are safe.
When you find a plant in the wild that you do not know? Back to Rule #1: ask first!
Your Favorite Food Plant
Think about your favorite food that grows from a plant.
What You Will Remember
What a day!
You learned to be a safe plant explorer. You know two big rules:
1. Always ask a grown-up before touching or tasting a plant you do not know.
2. Leaves of three, let it be.
These two rules keep your hands and your tummy safe forever.