Caring about Composting!

This year, every Monday Unquowa 8th graders are fortunate enough to learn and take part in the schools composting program. As of 2022, Unquowa has teamed up with Park City Composting, which is a composting organization based out of Bridgeport, CT. The school is working hand-in-hand with Tommy (the composting Master from Park City Composting) to educate our students on composting, sustainable waste practices, and gardening methods. In these weekly environmentally themed classes, students are able to have a hands-on experience in which they’ll gain an understanding on how to properly compost as well as learn about its benefits; not only is it important for people but the environment too! In our first visit, the students learned about the different materials thats make up a compost pile (food waste, woodchips, leaves, wood shavings) and they were able to check out some soil samples of mature compost from last year’s compost pile. Unquowa and the students are very eager to explore deeper into the realm of composting this year! ROT ON!

Park City Composting: WORMS!!!

The past couple of weeks Park City Composting has been introducing various styles of composting to our 8th grade class. Students have learned about Thermophilic composting, Mesophilic composting, how to make a traditional compost pile, how to use a tumbler composter and most recently, how to vermicompost which is composting with WORMS! 

Vermicomposting is a style of composting that utilizes earthworms or red wigglers to help aid in the breakdown process of organic material. The worms will eat the nitrogen sources (food scraps), digest the material and reintroduce it into the environment through their nutrient rich waste which are referred to as ‘worm castings’.  The students learned about the benefits of this style of composting as well as the anatomy of an earthworm! 

In the most recent visit with Park City Composting, students were able to help construct worm bins which are being stored in the science lab and monitored weekly. It is really incredible to see the breakdown process first hand; we are able to watch the food scraps in the pile be converted into organic-rich soil thanks to our wiggly friends!

Park City Composting: Mesophilic vs. Thermophilic

Lately with Park City Composting, the 8th graders have been learning how to measure and record different properties of the compost pile such as temperature, porosity, weight, bulk density. The students compared their results from past weeks and were asked to analyze the causes that may have played a role in these changes. Some examples included; the high activity of the actinobacteria caused more of the compost material to breakdown and released more heat into the pile, the breakdown of the material caused the pile to condense more thus reducing the porosity and much more. After data was recorded from the initial compost pile (also referred to as the Thermophilic pile) students were then introduced to the tumbler (also known as the Mesophilic pile). Students were asked to try to identify the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ of having each type of pile. They concluded that the tumbler is great for people who don’t have a lot of space for a traditional compost pile such as on an apartment balcony or small backyard. The traditional compost pile is ideal for those with the available space. In addition, the tumbler stays at lower temperatures than the traditional compost pile. Therefore, both types of composting methods are suitable for different situations and utilize different types of bacteria. We are excited to see the quality of compost these two different methods will produce, which will be used to help mend the school garden.

Park City Composting Visit #3 (Temperature, Weight, Porosity, & Bulk Density)

Little Surprises in Unquowa’s Garden!

In the fall there is a surprise in the Unquowa Garden! They are very small creatures that love and only eat milkweed. On the milkweed leaves Kindergarten found very small caterpillars. We brought them inside thinking we had two caterpillars but we actually had five hidden in the leaves! What a surprise! Daily we watched them change. “What are those black balls at the bottom of the aquarium?” the Kindergarteners asked. We soon learned that as the caterpillars grow they loose their skin and grow new skin. The black balls are their old skin. When the caterpillar hangs from the top of the aquarium looking like a letter J we know it’s getting ready to makes it’s chrysalis. The chrysalis is beautiful. It is bright green with gold dots. “Can we keep the gold?” asked the Kindergarteners. Again another discovery, after the chrysalis breaks open the gold is gone. Could it be in the color of the butterflies wings? After observing our adult Monarch butterflies for a few days we let them free. Some of us were sad to see them go and we wondered what else we could find in Unquowa’s garden?

Park City Composting Visit #2 (Composting Commenced!)

This week with Park City Composting, our 8th graders participated in the beginning process of starting the school’s compost pile! Students were able to get a first hand look at what kind of materials can be put into a compost pile; carbon sources (leafs, wood chips, sawdusts) were mixed in as the base of this concoction. Once the pile was mixed by the students, the compostable material (broccoli stalks, apples, egg shells, egg cartons, fruit rinds and peels) was also added then blended in. Our scholars wrote down some preliminary observations and data that will serve as the starting point (standard or datum) for our recordings and findings. We will continue to monitor (record data like temperature, etc) and modify the compost pile weekly; by the end of the school year we should have a fantastic baseline for the Unquowa composting program.  It is exciting to announce that the Unquowa composting project has officially begun!