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Christmas Crossword

 

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Across

1.       Bats and hedgehogs are doing this at this time of year

7.       Hopefully you wont be feeling like this after all that food!

8.   There was no room for Mary & Joseph here

9.   It can be cold and ______ in the morning

11. It belongs to him

13. Roast these on the fire to eat, they come off a tree that 

      grows in the woods at Kelling Heath

16. Trees that are not deciduous are _______

18. This is hung on doors at Christmas, often made of

       holly and ivy.

Down

1.       A prickly bush with red berries

2.       These are red and grow on holly, the birds love them

3.       A garden bird with a red breast

4.       Male red deer and reindeer have these

5.       An evergreen climber that often grows up trees

6.       If you are lucky you may get one at Christmas!

10. Norway _______, the type of tree often cut down or dug up at   

      Christmas

12. Gift

14. Another name for Father Christmas

15. When it is cold in winter we sometimes get this!

17. The colour of holly berries & Rudolf’s nose!

Christmas Bird Feeder

You can feed the birds and decorate your garden at the same time – here are some ideas how…

           Using natural string (not fishing line or thin thread as the birds may get tangled) thread an assortment of birds favourite foods and drape it over tree. Get an adult to help use a large needle to thread on monkey nuts (peanuts in their shells), dried fruit (a variety of types and colours look good), plain popcorn (no salt), slices of apple and berries. Add some ‘holly leaves’ by cutting out bread in a holly leaf shape using a special pastry cutter and thread on. These could have lard spread onto them and be sprinkled with birdseed to make them extra tasty for the birds.

    Go for a walk and collect some pine cones. Tie a loop of natural string or wool onto the cones. Get an adult to gently melt some lard and carfully dip the cones in or you could spread on peanut butter. Then roll the cones in birdseed and hang on your tree. 

Make sure you pack out your tree with lots of tasty treats for the birds!

Happy Christmas Acorn Club members!

A bird we often see on Christmas cards is the Robin. It is a bird we all know, with its bright red breast. Have you ever noticed one follow you round the garden looking for worms or scraps you might feed it? But why does it appear on so many Christmas cards? For many years it has been linked to this time of year, it represented the New Year and was seen as a symbol of peace. In early Victorian times, when people first started sending Christmas cards, a Robin was a popular picture on a card. The postmen at that time wore bright red waistcoats, and because of this were given the nickname ‘robins’ or ‘redbreasts’. So the robin on the card was representing the postman who delivered it!

Male robins are quite aggressive towards other robins that enter their territory. They use their red breasts to warn off rivals, a loud ticking call, and if that doesn’t stop them they may fight.

At this time of year putting food out can help robins, and other garden birds, survive long cold spells. They will eat bread, potatoes, seeds, nuts (not salted), suet, grated cheese but most of all (if you can face it!) live mealworms you can get from pet shops.            

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