Down to Earth Ideas for a Better Environment SM
Home > Specials > Science Fair Project Kit $130 + $35 S/H ($47 to ALASKA)
Use it long after your children have won 1st Prize & the Science Fair is over!
Includes special instructions and ideas for Science Fair Projects that are ecologically useful,
easy to set up and scientifically sound.
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| Redworms (Eisenia fetida) |
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| Worm Factory 3 Tray System (16 in X 16 in) |
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| Bumper Sticker |
Our Science Fair Project Kit includes EVERYTHING you need.
- The 3-Tray Worm Factory System
- 3 Lbs. of Hungry Redworms - One pound for each tray
- "Exploring Profits In Worm Farming" Booklet
- "Guide to Small Scale Vermicomposting"
- 3 bricks of Coir - the "Easy-Start" bedding material
- Worm Anatomy Flyer to display at Science Fair
- "How Worms THRIVE", fact sheet
- "Why Worms CRAWL", fact sheet
- The "Common Compost Creatures" guide
- 4 "Promote Global Worming" bumper stickers to display on backboard at Science Fair and on each tray.
Worm composting is an incredibly efficient way to convert kitchen scraps and yard waste into nutrient-rich compost for your garden.
Science Fair Projects using Redworms
Note: Each of these projects will take at least 2 to 3 months to complete. Some can be completed in less time by restricting the size of the bin and the amount of waste material and increasing the population of redworms. READ ALL THIS INFORMATION BEFORE BEGINNING EXPERIMENT!
Here are a few examples of simple Science Fair Projects using this kit.
HYPOTHESIS* 1
Food waste with high natural sugar content (like fruit, melons or bananas) will be consumed and processed into castings by redworms faster than foods with a high natural acid content (like tomatoes).
HYPOTHESIS 2
Less dense material (like melons, strawberries, or bananas) will be converted to castings quicker by redworms than more dense material (like apples, carrots, crushed leaves, or compost).
HYPOTHESIS 3
Redworms prefer organic material from the yard (like grass clippings, leaf mold, compost, etc.) better than food waste from the kitchen.
NOTE: Remember that you can expand and create more complicated experiments like using the casting material produced from each feed stock to determine which compost material from which feed stocks help seeds to germinate faster, grow faster, or produce more fruit, flowers, or vegetables. Or use the casting material produced and compare it with chemical fertilizers to see whether the worm castings or chemical fertilizers produce fastest seed germination, growth or sustains the plant to maturity and which soil amendment produces more fruit, flowers or vegetables. The possibilities are endless!
WEARING PLASTIC GLOVES:
You should wear plastic disposable gloves to handle the material so you don’t contaminate anything with what may be on your hands and to prevent infecting you with any pathogens that may be present in the waste material. Wearing a different pair of plastic disposable gloves when working with each tray will help to keep contamination from other bin material from the different trays. Using the disposable gloves tells any Science Fair Judge that you were trying to be very careful and scientifically accurate, paying attention to details as you conducted your experiment. It is a very good health practice as well. Mom will appreciate it, too.
SET UP
The Worm Factory 3 Tray worm bin will arrive before the worms are delivered. Set the worm bin up right away so the worms have a home when they arrive. Place the “Promote Global WORMING” bumper stickers on each tray directly under the lip, save the other sticker to display on your project board at the fair. Soak the 3 small coir bricks in the same amount of water in separate containers then place 1 brick of moistened coir in each of the 3 individual trays. Mix 1 lb of rich dark dirt (from under a tree or from your organic garden) in with the coir in each tray. This adds grit for the worms' digestion and microorganisms to jump-start the system.
Most of the time it is best to put the worm bin in a place out of direct sun. If it is cold (below 50 degrees) then place the trays in a place where they will get filtered sun for most of the day, like in a south facing window up on a shelf or counter; monitor moisture carefully. Do not place the trays where they will be exposed to rain, sprinklers, snow, varmints, dogs, or anything else that might bother the experiment. Remember to keep them out of any area that may get sprayed with a pest control spray. Place the trays on top of a plastic tray or metal sheet to avoid staining floor or counter as liquid will leach down through the material. After the experiment is completed you will stack the trays into each other and place in the Worm Factory base assembly with spigot for future use as a regular worm bin. You could place one tray in the base assembly now.
Be sure to record everything that you do in your project notebook. Measure & weigh everything before you place in tray. That is - measure the water & temperatures, weigh the coir, dirt, worms, food, etc. Keep excellent records with accurate dates and you'll have an excellent project! Keep poor records and you'll have a poor chance of learning or winning at the Science Fair.
Place ½ lb of feedstock in a thin layer in one corner on top of the coir bedding material. Cover entire tray with 2 inches of damp shredded newspaper then place lid over layer of shredded moist newspaper. Do this in each of the 3 trays using a different feedstock in each tray. Try feedstocks such as leaf mold, grass clippings, active compost, tomatoes, watermelon, bananas, spaghetti, rabbit manure, cow manure, or anything you'd like to experiment with. Check the THRIVE Page for good feed stock material under the letter “R.”
When the worms arrive lift the layer of shredded moist newspaper with a small hand garden fork and gently pour the worms on top of the bedding where there is no food waste. Cover again with the shredded moist newspaper.
RECORDING OBSERVATIONS
Every 3 days lift the layer of shredded moist newspaper and take a look to see what has happened, if anything. Write your observations in your project notebook. Take digital images or make drawings of the layers in the bin and activity of worms.
Some things to look for:
1. Are the worms “involved” in the food waste?
“Involved” means – they are crawling in and about and around the food waste.
2. Is mold growing on the surface of the food waste?
3. Any odors – pleasant or unpleasant?
4. Do you observe any other organisms other than the redworms that may be helping break down the material?
5. What is the temperature of the bedding or food waste?
6. Moisture content okay? Moisture of bedding material should be that of a wrung-out sponge. That means when you take a handful and make a fist, squeezing out the moisture, only 1 or 2 drops should be released. If too moist - place some dry shredded newspaper on top of food waste layer to absorb the excess moisture. If too dry - mist the bedding & newspaper with water from a spray bottle. Use tap, filtered or distilled water, whatever your experiment calls for.
Record your observations neatly for each separate bin in your project notebook; be sure to write the date you made your observations.
In order to test your hypothesis accurately, be sure to put the same amount of waste in each tray, ½ lb each feeding; placing the food in the corners and rotating the feedings in a clockwise direction. Taking pictures will ensure a good presentation at the fair. Remember only place new food in if and when the worms are actively involved in the food that was placed in previously. In other words to avoid overfeeding, put new food in when the worms are crawling in & about & around the food that you put in there last time. The worms should need new food every 3 to 4 days at the start of the experiment and then more often as the experiment proceeds. Worms can eat 3 times their weight a week, some say ½ their weight a day. You have 1 lb of worms in each tray so ½ lb every 3 days should get processed fairly fast. Put the same amount of food in each tray at each feeding. After a month you may need to increase the feedings to 1 lb in each tray every 3 days.
INFORMATION YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND:
Worms have no teeth. The microorganisms (bacteria, fungi, mold, micro arthropods, etc.) from the dirt that you mixed in with the coir at start up are the organisms that break down the food waste, making it available to the worms. At start up there are few microorganisms to break down the food for the worms. After a while the microorganisms grow in population and break the food waste down faster so the worms can process it all quicker. After a month the whole system of organisms is working together efficiently to break the waste material down at the speed expected. Also, you’ll notice that bacteria populations bloom when natural sugars are present. Worms eat the bacteria, fungi, mold and the feces of all other organisms present; they also can consume soft things such as melons.
CONCLUSIONS
What conclusions can you draw from your observations? Was your hypothesis correct or not?
* An unproved theory.