Last week Room 19 visited the worm farm at the Eco Station to follow up on our learning around animal habitats. We have been specifically focusing on how worms are suited to their habitat and how we can protect them.

At the worm farm we learnt about three different types of worms. There are compost worms that live above the ground which break down food scraps and make compost. Top soil worms help air and water flow through soil and produce fertiliser. Deep soil worms can live up to 3 metres under the ground and bring nutrients to the surface.

We went digging for worms with assistance from our parent helpers and learnt worms breathe out of their skin. We made sure our hands were wet when we touched them and that we handled them very carefully. We also learnt some other interesting facts about worms like they have five hearts.

Next it was time to build our very own worm homes. First we carefully cut the top of our bottles and covered them in newspaper to make sure they were dark enough for our worms. Next we teared up strips of newspaper and soaked them in buckets of water. Then we squeezed all the water out and fluffed them up because worms need to be able to move and have some moisture. Then we each found ourselves five worms to live in our homes in the larger worm farms. Lastly we closed up our worm house by placing the lid on upside down with soil and grass seeds inside.

Now all we needed to know was how to care for our worms. They only need tiny amounts of food - in fact a pinky nail size serving would last them a week. Some things they love to eat are banana skin, apple cores and tea bags. Worms aren’t allowed food with citrus, bread or spicy foods.

Take a look at the photos from our trip - we had a great time learning more about worms and their habitats!