Terrarium Set-up

Questions???  What organisms live in the environment?  How do the animals depend on the plants for their needs? How do the plants depend on the animals?  How do the plants depend on microorganisms in the soil?  What nonliving things do the plants and animals depend on?  How did the living things you observed get food, shelter, water, and protection?

Questions??? What is a terrarium?  “Terra” is Latin for Land  A Terrarium is a container used to grow plants or hold small insects/animals. What is germination?  When a seed sprouts and starts to grow. The seeds will only grow if they are planted properly today. Don’t plant too many or plant them too deep. How do plants grow?  Plants take water and carbon dioxide and turn it into food when they are in sunlight. This is called PHOTOSYNTHESIS.

Procedures 1. Remove the cap from the bottle. 2. Place a square piece of fiberglass screen over the mouth of the bottle. Secure the screen with a rubber band. Place the band on the neck of the bottle to hold the piece of screen in place. 3. Stand the bottle, neck down, on a plastic cup. One partner will need to hold the terrarium steady. The other can put in the items. Be sure to take turns. 4. Add one plastic cup full of gravel to the terrarium.

Procedures 5. Add two plastic cup full of soil on top of the gravel. Try not to muddy the sides of the terrarium as you work. 6. Divide the surface of the terrarium soil into four equal parts using two toothpicks. Each part will hold something different.

Procedures  Bird’s eye view of your terrarium set up  Label each section of your terrarium with an “M” for mustard seed, “A” for alfalfa, and “G” for grass. Mustard Seed Alfalfa Rye Grass

Predictions Which seeds do you think will germinate (sprout) first? What will the sprouts look like? Do you think every seed will germinate ? Will the dead plant material change? Will the rock change? Why will these plants be important to the terrarium once we add animals to it?

Hopefully in a few days you will have some growth in your terrarium! What does a plant need to grow?