Sunlight, Plants, and Color: Bringing Botany to Life with Turmeric Anthotype Solar Printing

Fifth grade is such a beautiful time in the Waldorf journey — a moment of balance, curiosity, and wonder before the great leap into adolescence. In the botany block, students explore the plant world not as detached observers, but as participants in its living rhythms. They come to see plants as expressions of light, air, water, and earth — each one shaped by its environment and filled with the wisdom of growth.

Turmeric anthotype solar printing fits perfectly into this exploration. It’s an art and science experience all in one — and a gentle, golden way to make the invisible visible. Using the natural pigment found in turmeric, students create a light-sensitive “paint” that records the imprint of leaves, petals, and other plant forms through the action of sunlight itself. Over several hours, the sun slowly bleaches away parts of the image, leaving behind delicate silhouettes — a living dialogue between plant, pigment, and light.

The anthotype process has its roots in the earliest days of photography. In the 1840s, English scientist Sir John Herschel discovered that natural plant pigments could react to sunlight, producing images without the need for chemicals. Artists and scientists of his time experimented with everything from spinach to beetroot and berries — exploring how light itself could draw images directly from nature’s palette. Today, turmeric anthotypes continue that tradition, offering a completely non-toxic, plant-based way to explore both art and science — a true meeting of the past and the present.

This process beautifully mirrors what the fifth grader is discovering in botany: how plants transform sunlight into life through photosynthesis, how color in nature speaks of vitality, and how everything in the natural world is in relationship. It’s a tangible way to experience the gesture of the plant — not through memorization, but through doing, observing, and wonder.

And beyond the science, it’s pure magic. Watching the image appear feels like watching nature whisper her secrets directly onto paper. It’s slow, quiet work that cultivates patience and reverence — qualities deeply nurtured in Waldorf handwork and science alike.

This project also offers a wonderful opportunity for collaboration between the handwork teacher, gardening teacher, and class teacher! Together, they can weave a living picture of learning — from the garden where the plants grow, to the handwork room where color and light are transformed, to the main lesson where the mystery of photosynthesis is studied in depth.

To bring this experience into your classroom or home, I’ve created a video tutorial that guides you step-by-step through the turmeric anthotype process — from mixing the golden pigment to revealing the sunlight print. You’ll see how easy it is to do with students, using only simple, natural materials.

And just in time for Martinmas, there’s a second video showing how to transform those luminous turmeric prints into handmade lanterns — a beautiful way to carry the golden light of the sun into the darker evenings of the season. It’s a perfect project to bridge the outer study of botany with the inner mood of warmth, light, and gratitude that Martinmas inspires.

This project is a sneak peek of our upcoming 5th Grade Handwork Curriculum Guide—coming soon! It offers many ways to deepen the connection between handwork and a child's unfolding sense of beauty and purpose.

Watch the tutorials below, and join us in celebrating the radiant gifts of sunlight, color, and creativity!

Click HERE to watch the video tutorial for creating turmeric anthotype prints

Click HERE to watch the lantern making tutorial

Want to learn more about the beauty of 5th grade handwork? Save the date and join us for our online international conference in February 2026!