The Ecocolumn

Terrestrial chamber
Filtration Layer Soil/potting soil Seeds/plant

Decomposition chamber Leaf/grass material

Potting soil Fruit, potato Fruit fly/worms

Aquatic chamber
Substrate material (sand/gravel, aquarium rock) Guppy, other organisms aquatic plant

Activity: Building the Ecocolumn

Part A. The Terrestrial Chamber

Terrestrial chamber
Sand, gravel, stones Soil/potting soil Seeds/plant

1. Germinate the seeds. a. Measure the mass of 5 seeds. Find the average. b. Place the seeds in a bed of moist cotton spread out in a petri dish. Note: Mark the area first with 2. Prepare the terrestrial chamber.
the desired height before you start cutting the bottle

a. Have a layer of gravel, stone, and sand at the bottom. This will serve as a filtration layer. Measure the mass of each material before placing these into the chamber. b. Place soil on top of your filtration layer. Measure the mass of the soil. Use pH paper to determine its acidity. c. Plant your germinated seeds. d. Make small holes in the cap and a bigger hole to insert a piece of plastic straw. This will allow water to pass through and will connect this chamber with the decomposing chamber.

Activity: Building the Ecocolumn

Part B. The Aquatic Chamber 1. Decide on what organisms you plan to include in your aquatic chamber. 2. Mark and cut the bottle to the desired height.

Aquatic chamber
Substrate material (sand/gravel, aquarium rock) Guppy (optional) Snail aquatic plant

3. Make a port hole for easy access. This should be above the water level. 4. Measure the mass of the substrate material you plan to use. Place your substrate material at the bottom of the bottle. 5. Add water. Make sure to measure the volume of water before this is added.

6. Measure the temperature and pH of the water.

7. Add your organism/s.

Activity: Building the Ecocolumn

Part C. The Decomposition Chamber 1. Mark and cut the bottle to the desired height. 2. Make small holes in the cap to allow water to pass through.

Decomposition Chamber
Leaf/grass material Potting soil Fruit, potato Fruit fly/worms

3. Make a small port hole enough for a thermometer to pass through.

4. Measure the mass of an empty zip loc bag. 5. Collect the desired amount of decayed material and place in the zip loc bag. Measure its mass. 6. Place the decayed material in the chamber. 7. Measure the temperature of the decayed material.

In their notebook, answer the following: Create a list of biotic and abiotic factors Draw a labeled diagram of the chamber.

What is present in your chamber that will help sustain life? Absent? What must be done for organisms in your system to survive?