Kids love worms!
Vermicomposting (composting with worms) is one of the simplest and easiest ways for schools to compost. Vermicomposting composts quicker when comparing to other systems, reducing (or eliminating) the smell and insect issues often associated with other compost systems.
The basic idea is to keep your worms happy. You do this by feeding them your food scraps, shredded paper, dry garden leaves and lawn clippings, sawdust, etc.
In nature, compost worms live in the forest floor amongst the fallen leaves and other rotting vegetation, animal droppings, etc. They are the great natural composters that work with the microorganisms that feed on the organic waste materials.
Subpod, a worm farm that is buried into the soil, provides compost worms with the perfect environment for them to do their work of breaking down food and organic waste.
Subpod mimics conditions found in nature. The movement of worms and microbes between Subpod and the garden bed builds soil fertility and plant health, allowing nutrient-dense food to be grown.
The beauty of using Subpod to compost your school’s food waste is it creates an opportunity to show students just how easy it is to grow some of their food at the same time! Sharing the relationship between food waste, soil food and growing nutritious food can be a great way to engage students in the composting process and food cycle.
What can be grown around a Subpod?
With worms fertilizing your plants at root level, your Subpod creates a wonderful opportunity to grow anything you or your students like!
We suggest considering growing herbs and edible plants around your Subpod – nothing better than teaching young people how to grow some of their own food and showing them how to use it. You can also grow insect friendly plants for butterflies and bees.
Some Class Ideas for Using Subpod:
Classes with their own Subpod Grow Bed could grow plants with a particular theme, such as a salad/pasta/pizza/stir fry food ingredient beds or flowers/butterfly/bee/insect beds.
What grows in your Subpod? Treasure hunt using microscopes to look at soil mycology.
Creative sign workshops explaining the soil/food web to go alongside Subpods in the school grounds. How to feed signs, decorating collection bin signs etc.
Grow herbs and breed compost worms for sale in a school market stall setup which becomes another cool project and engages teachers/parents/community.
Start a ‘Food Scraps Friday’ project where students bring food waste from home one day a week and document how much waste they are diverting from landfill. This project could be run in conjunction with a local community garden incorporating family garden members such as parents and grandparents.
For more information on introducing Subpod to your school email info@urbangreenfarms.com.au or join our exclusive FREE Teachers Portal to access resources, learning guides, grant application templates and so much more!