I did a small but messy project this week. I made “strawberry stones.”
We are growing strawberries in our garden and of course the bright color attracts birds that want to peck them. So the idea of berry stones is to surround berry plants with little stones that you have painted bright red. Then birds learn, “Oh, those pretty red things don’t taste good.”
Anyway, I made a thick roux of flour and water and colored it bright red with food coloring. Then I dumped some gravel stones into this red “mud” in my saucepan, and fished them out to let them dry on a cookie sheet. They actually looked more convincing in the garden than on the cookie sheet, because the little flecks of dirt that get on them look realistic.
This is the technology news of the week for me.
Strawberry plant with some gravel next to it, and also a few pieces of gravel that are painted bright red to look like small strawberries.
Pieces of gravel covered with a thick paste of flower and water, colored red with food coloring