What Is Compost? | Botanical Relationships

How does natural waste like fruit and vegetable peels become a superfood for growing new plants? Compost! But what is compost, anyway?

Questions and Prompts for Educators

Check for Understanding

Take It Further

Conduct a decomposition experiment. Place different types of natural waste in containers. Predict how long each will take to break down and record the results.

Create

Design a brochure to educate and encourage your community to start composting.
Turn natural waste into something else, just like compost does! Create a compost collage using natural waste such as dried leaves, orange peels, and weeds. When you are all done, consider adding it to a compost pile at your school or local community center.

Make a Personal Connection

Start a class compost using a 2-liter bottle. Collect natural waste from campus, including snack/lunch leftovers and dead leaves/plant materials. Create a science journal and document what you add to your pile, how often you care for it, the temperature of the natural waste, and the changes you observe.

Table of contents heading: Questions and Prompts for Educators

LS1.C: ORGANIZATION FOR MATTER AND ENERGY FLOW IN ORGANISMS
How do organisms obtain and use the matter and energy they need to live and grow?
LS2.B: CYCLES OF MATTER AND ENERGY TRANSFER IN ECOSYSTEMS
How do matter and energy move through an ecosystem?

Table of contents heading: Standards