Mini Worm Farm

Age Range: All ages
Time Required: 20 minutes
Fundamental: Outdoors

Worms are nocturnal creatures and are active only at night, when they drag leaves and grass down their tunnels to munch on. This little worm farm is great to see worms in action. To get them moving place your worm farm container in a paper bag or other dark spot to simulate after-dark. Not only are they fun to watch, you can have your worms recycle small amounts of food scraps by turning potato peels into nutrient rich worm castings (worm poo) which you can use on your garden! 

Materials Needed

  • Empty 2L clear plastic soft drink bottle or similar
  • Soil or potting mix and Sand (optional) 
  • Newspaper ripped into small squares and wet
  • Hay, dead leaves or grass clippings
  • Food scraps (vegetables, lettuce, fruit etc.) 
  • 10 to 15 worms 
  • Hammer & Nail, Scissors, Marker Pen, Wide Tape

Instructions

  1. Using a hammer and nail, punch four small holes in the bottom of your container for drainage. 
  2. Carefully use the scissors to cut the top neck of your container
  3. Place a 3cm layer of soil or potting mix in the bottom of the container. Now add a 3cm layer of sand. Repeat this alternate layering of soil and sand to 1/2 – 3/4 fill the container. If you don’t have sand half fill the container just with soil
  4. Place a 3cm layer of wet newspaper squares on top of the soil/sand layers.  Place a 3cm layer of hay, dead leaves or grass clippings.  Place a 5cm layer of vegetive food scraps torn into small pieces.  
  5. Slowly add about half a cup of water to the container
  6. Now it’s time to add your worms. Gently place them into the top of your container. Native worms you find in your garden are fine for this project. 
  7. Have fun watching the worms create tunnels and collect any liquid (worm wee) that drains out of the container for a great fertilizer to use on your garden. Feed the worms after about a week (when they have settled in) and add water every 4 days or so to keep the soil moist.
  8. Keep the worm farm in a cool shady area. And release the worms into your garden once you’re done enjoying them! 

As a Girl Guide, How Can I Lead This Activity?

Use this as a Patrol activity for a Unit meeting.

As a Unit Leader, How Can I Make This Activity Girl Led?

Ask girls to research how worm farms can help our environment and get them to share this with the Unit.

As a Unit, how can we make sure everyone is included?

Share your soil and worms, or any other resources, for those who don't have a garden to dig up!

Follow Up Questions and Reflections

What can we do differently next time?
What other activities could you do with your new skills?
How did it make you feel?
What did you like or dislike?
What did you learn?

Activity source and acknowledgements

www.madaboutscience.com.au

Join

 
Return to Home