Five Things to Do With Your Autumn Conker Haul!

23rd of Sep, 2020

It's that time of year again when the golden brown conkers are cascading from the trees in their prickly green coats, ripe for the picking and perfect for collecting! So if you're looking forward to another season of filling bags, pockets and boxes with conkers, here's a helpful list of things you can do with them once you've got them home!

 

  1. Make models of people, animals and towers!

Whilst you’re out collecting conkers you can also collect some extra natural craft materials to help you turn your conkers into a range of animals, people or places! Think twigs for a rabbit’s ears, leaves for mum’s hair or why not drill a hole through several conkers and make your own snake!

https://www.getoutwiththekids.co.uk/activities/making/conkers/

 

 

  1. Turn your conkers into mini pumpkins!

As we approach Halloween, why not paint your conkers in a spooktacular way and turn them into miniature pumpkins! With some orange paint and a black felt tip pen to design the eyes, nose and mouth.

https://www.liveitloveitmakeit.com/2015/10/make-it-conker-pumpkins.html

 

  1. Make an eco-friendly washing detergent!

Conkers (or Horse Chestnuts to be precise) are packed full of saponins, a chemical compound which acts like a natural soap. You can find the full instructions on how to make the detergent over on Wasteland Rebels website here https://wastelandrebel.com/en/make-laundry-detergent-out-of-chestnuts/

 

  1. How many in the jar?

Take it in turns to submit your guesses for how many conkers you think might fit in a container (a transparent vase or Tupperware works well), fill up the container and then count the conkers as you take them back out, the closest guess wins!

 

  1. Conker Bowls!

Firstly, you’ll need to select a few conkers and paint them in your chosen team colour. Then, place a small token such as a counter or die in the middle of your floor, and take it in turns to flick or roll your conkers as close to your token as you can. Whoever has the most amount of close conkers at the end is the winner!