SECTION 6 - Solutions Compost-ables, PART B, P2 ACTIVITIES FIRST SESSION, CONTINUED. What makes great compost: • Brown matter: Brown matter includes materials such as twigs, branches, paper, and cardboard—basically anything dry or woody. In most cases, items in the “brown” category will be naturally brown, but there are certainly exceptions to that rule. Brown matter contains carbon, which provides energy for the bene昀椀cial microbes in the compost. • Green matter: When it comes to composting, green matter refers to natural waste products that were recently growing and have moisture. This could include things like fruit and vegetable waste and grass clippings, but materials such as co昀昀ee grounds are also considered to be green matter. • Water What is better to leave out of your compost: • Consider what goes into your composter and the potential harm it can do to your plants. Most animal byproducts need to be left out of your composter: • Meat, 昀椀sh, egg, dairy, and poultry products (the exception here is eggshells, dry them 昀椀rst and break them into small pieces before putting them into your compost). • Oils, both cooking and vegetable oils. • Coal or charcoal ash which could contain substances harmful to plants. • Leaves, twigs, and the fruit from black walnut trees which contain the toxin juglone, which is known to harm many plants. • Trimmings from plants previously treated with pesticides. GROUP ACTIVITY • Play the Dictionary activity, using only terms that apply to this subject. The aim is to create a common language to be used throughout this unit. (Compost, carbon sink, organic matter, carbon sequestering.) (10 minutes) • Using the matrix, analyze what the learner(s) had for breakfast or lunch (depending on the time of day) in terms of how much of what they did not eat can be composted. This includes peelings from fruit and vegetables, bread, noodles, protein, etc. (20 minutes) ACTIVITIES SECOND SESSION, PART B BUILD A COMPOSTER: for younger learners prep the bottles ahead of time so they won’t have to use the knives. (10 minutes) • Use a nail to punch 10 holes into the sides of the bottle. Scatter these holes randomly about the bottle. Do not punch holes in the bottom • Fill the bottle with alternating dirt, newspaper and leaves. • Spray with water. • Begin to add the compostable vegetation. • Put the top of the bottle into the bottle as a funnel for water (keep a towel over top when not in use). • Label the bottle with the learner’s name. • Put in sunlight. • Stir every couple of days. • Add more compostable vegetation and soil regularly. 41