Compost Science

What can kids do to save the environment? Have they ever heard of saving up garbage and then using it later? Probably not. It may sound pretty gross, but your kids will soon find out that it's a great way to help the earth!

You Need

• vegetable kitchen waste
• large pail with lid
• shovel
• leaves or cut grass
• adult helper

Do This

1. Save your vegetable garbage, like banana peels, potato skins, and rotting tomatoes, in a pail. Do not save meat, bones, fat, cheese, milk, or anything other animal products. Do not save plastics, glass, or paper – these can be recycled in other ways!
2. Help your child choose an appropriate place to age the vegetable material in your yard or in a public gardening space. Make it a shady, sheltered area of dirt.
3. When the pail is about half full, take it out to your selected compost area. Spread out a shallow layer of the kitchen waste.
4. Scatter leaves or grass over the kitchen waste. Add another layer of waste over this each time your pail is half full. Always top the pile with leaves or grass.
5. Sprinkle the compost lightly with water every few days. Don't soak the pile, just dampen it.
6. When the pile is about 3 feet (1 m) high, help your child turn it with a shovel.

What Happened?

Your saved-up kitchen waste decayed, becoming food for bacteria and earthworms. These little creatures helped produce a nutrient-rich all-natural organic fertilizer for your garden. Spread this rich, dark fertilizer around your trees and flowers. It will feed them, protect their roots from heat and frost, and keep them from drying out, so you'll be able to water less. Plus, by reusing vegetable waste, you and your child are taking the burden off of landfills, and taking the soil into your own hands!

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