Little Sprouts: Vermicomposting

This is an awesome activity to try with your children during those cold winter months.  If you're successful at vermicomposting, then you'll have some wonderful compost for your garden or potted containers come springtime!

Notes: Uncle Jim's Worm Farm is the most affordable place I could find that carries red worms.  I've provided links with the books and Uncle Jim's Worm Farm.  Worms can be purchased via Amazon.com or directly at their site (see direct links below).  You will only need about 10-15 worms per bottle, so make sure you have a plan for the excess worms you're purchasing, since the smallest amount is 250 wrigglers!

Tuesday evening was brimming with squirmy fun and excitement!  Master Gardener Bonnie Rogers showed each Little Sprout how to make their own tabletop vermicomposter (fancy word for worm composter) to take home.  Compost is wonderful for the garden and it is basically plant matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment.  We read some fun books, one called Wiggly Worm by Betty Ann Schwartz and illustrated by Brenda Sexton and Compost Stew by Mary McKenna Siddals and illustrated by Ashley Wolff (I erroneously reported to you for the last note that we read this last meeting).  Our evening snack was dirt cups with chocolate pudding, crushed Oreo cookies and gummy worms and slugs!  Master Gardener Bonnie explained what worms do to enrich and aerate the soil and how they help our plants grow healthy and strong roots.  We also learned the do's and don'ts for composting kitchen scraps.  Each Little Sprout was given a pre-assembled compost container, which were made out of two, two-liter soda pop bottles. 

Each Little Sprout went through seven stations to complete their vermicomposter.  The first station they were given sheets of paper and ripped them into small pieces.  Next, they soaked their torn paper into a bucket of water and squeezed out the excess water and placed it into their composter.  Then, they added top soil (important to note that you cannot use potting soil for this step for the livelihood of the worms!).  We had a large bin with worms inside and one of our Girl Scout helpers from Wellsboro Cadette Troop 755 grabbed handfuls of worms and gave everyone the opportunity to pick out the worms for their composters.  It was exciting to watch the kids pick out their worms.  Little Sprout Emma's mom told me after the evening's events she shared with her mom during the car ride home, "First I didn't like worms. Then I learned about them. Now I like worms!"  Now the Little Sprouts can watch the worms break down kitchen scraps.  Each Little Sprout was charged with the duty of adding their leftover kitchen scraps and keeping their plants watered.  There are plants in the top of the composter and when watered, this trickles down to decompose the scraps and keep the worms happy.  The last stage of the composter collects the "compost tea" at the bottom which they can re-use to water their plants, since it's rich in nutrients that plants love!  So many wonderful lessons are encapsulated in this one little activity!  I already see the enthusiasm and success of the vermicomposters at home.  Our Little Sprout, Ara, wanted to save some of her dinner salad for the worms last evening.  This project is a brilliant way to teach children about composting with worms and is an excellent technique for recycling food waste!  Did you know that worm castings in the home garden often contain 5 to 11 times more nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium as the surrounding soil?  The Little Sprouts learned that worms really do a lot to help our gardens grow well.  I'll be posting a worksheet on the Little Sprouts Facebook page that shows how to make one on your own. We also have pictures and videos posted as well:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=30233&id=111365985593595

https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1842059101392&oid=111365985593595&comments

Special thanks to Master Gardeners Kathy Odenweller, Lori Redell, and Ann Vayansky for assisting.  Thanks to the Wellsboro Cadette Troop 755 Girl Scouts Ashleigh Abplanalp, Shyann Foreman, and Katie Pacific and co-leader Renee Rogers for their assistance at the evening's program.  Thank you as well to Master Gardener Bonnie Rogers for leading the evening's class and donating the red worms, top soil and all the rest of the supplies for making the vermicomposters.  As always a debt of gratitude must be paid to the Friends of the Library, whose monetary support makes these classes possible and FREE for every Little Sprout!


On the 8th of March, Little Sprouts will learn about bulbs and how to plant them! We'll have tulip bulbs for everyone to plant into peat pot containers donated by the Tioga County Penn State Master Gardeners. Each Little Sprout can take their pot home and watch their bulbs grow and bloom. We'll munch on delicious granola cookies while we listen to some really great books all about bulbs and how they grow. We have three new books that the library has purchased for the evening and hope we'll have time to read them all:  Tulips by Melanie Mitchell, How Tulips Grow by Joanne Mattern and From Bulb to Daffodil by Ellen Weiss. By the end of the evening, all the Little Sprouts will have a basic understanding of the life cycle of a bulb.  Following the class, the books will be available for check out.
Click here to download the instructions for the vermicomposter:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/52807419

Making Wiggly Gelatin Earthworms

Gelatin Worms Made from Larger Drinking Straws

These worms, as pictured, were made from McDonald's and Wendy's drinking straws we had leftover.  They make considerably bigger, juicier worms for slurping satisfaction.  This is a great snack if you are doing a garden-themed project with the kids.  This is definitely a major undertaking, but are sure to be a hit with your little ones!

Ingredients:

Plastic, flexible drinking straws, 80-100
Clean, 1 quart beverage container (half and half, orange juice or heavy whipping cream container) with top cut off.

6 ounce package of raspberry gelatin mix

3/4 of an ounce unflavored gelatin (three packages in a 1 ounce Knox box package, so use three of the four packets)
3 cups boiling water
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
Green food coloring (about ten drops).  Green gel food coloring works well too, give a couple good squirts.

Fully Extend Flexible Part of Straw

Directions:

Beforehand, fully extend the flexible part of the straws.  Place the straws in the empty heavy whipping cream container with the flexible region at the bottom of the container.  Pack the straws in snugly.
1. In a bowl, add the flavored and unflavored gelatin.

2. Boil the water and add to the bowl with the powered gelatin.  Stir with a whisk until completely dissolved.

3. Do not add the heavy whipping cream until the mixture has cooled for at least fifteen to twenty minutes or you can place in the fridge for ten minutes to save some time.  Once cooled down, stir in the cream and then add green food coloring, stirring until it resembles a earthworm color.

5. Using a container with a spout, like a measuring cup or batter bowl, fill with the mixture and pour into the container holding the straws.  This is best done in a clean sink in case you spill some. 

Enjoying Tasty Worms

6. Take some wax paper to cover the straws.  Hold the wax paper in place with a rubber band.  Allow the gelatin to chill in the refrigerator overnight.

7. Simply tear the carton away from the filled straws. Pull straws apart. Run hot tap water for about two to three seconds over 3 to 4 straws at a time. Starting at the empty ends, push worms from straws with rolling pin, or use your fingers pinching the straw and running your fingers down the length of the straw to slide them out onto trays or cookie sheets lined with wax paper.

Some will break, but broken worms taste just as good! Chill them again, covered in the refrigerator for 2 more hours or up to two days.  

To serve:  Add the earthworms to your dirt recipe for a realistic worm treat or pair with fresh fruit like sliced kiwi and grapes for a delicious snack.  Worms will hold at room temperature for about 2 hours.