Analysis: We kept our ecosystem in a large glass container. We put sand on the bottom, rocks as the second layer, and soil on the top. We also placed moss on the surface to help keep the plants hydrated and insulated. In our terrarium, we included an aloe vera succulent as well as a jelly bean succulent. For the moss, we used moss that we found near our homes. We used "drought resistance" as our theme. The theme was chosen because all of the plants that we put in our terrarium are good for in a drought since succulents do not require much water. Our hypothesis was that the moss would help the plants thrive by holding the water in and keeping the surrounding environment moist. It would also stabilize the plants in the soil. We also placed some worms in the terrarium to work as decomposers. The plants were the producers, and the other insects in the soil were the consumers. There were at least three cycles taking place in the terrarium: the water cycle, the carbon cycle, and the nitrogen cycle.First was the water cycle. Whenever we watered the terrarium, the water would first soak through the layers down to the bottom. Then it would slowly evaporate from the bottom, going back through the soil, and out of the top. The plants would absorb the water, causing them to transpire some of the water. Next is the carbon cycle. The plants would absorb the sunlight and undergo a process called photosynthesis. The plants would then produce oxygen that could be absorbed by the earthworms. The plant would also produce glucose that the other organisms could eat to gain energy. If the plants and animals died, they would decompose and be absorbed in to the ground and add to the geosphere. The final cycle is the nitrogen cycle. Plants absorb nitrogen from the atmosphere and then expel ammonia in to our terrarium. The bacteria in our terrarium would convert the ammonia into nitrates. Other proteins would thrive off of the nitrates and the organisms would have more nutrients to attain. |
Terrarium Lab
For this lab, our objective was to successfully plan and grow a terrarium that sustained our chosen plants and gave them a healthy environment to thrive. Hypothesis: At the beginning, we predicted that all of our succulents and other plants would successfully survive in our homemade terrarium. We think that the they will all be able to survive in the right living conditions, especially with the sunlight from the window, the water we carefully poured in, and the nutrients from the soil. Materials Used: 1. Glass container 2. Gravel 3. Moss 4. Dirt 5. Sand 6. Plants 7. 3 leveled consumers We kepted our ecosystem in a large glass jar with sand on the bottom, rocks in the middle, soil on the top and then some moss around our plants to help keep them stay hydrated and insulated. In our terrarium, we included a jelly bean succulent as well as an aloe vera succulent. For our moss we used local moss that we can found around where we live. Our theme was drought-resistance because all of the plants that we are using are good to plant during droughts. Our hypothesis was that although we used minimal water, our moss would help our plants thrive by holding in the water and keeping the environment moist. It would also help to stabilize the plants in the soil. We also added worms to serve as decomposers, we have our plants as producers, and there are insects in the soil that act as consumers. Observations: Week 1: We built our terrarium and planted our plants. In doing so, we watered them a lot. Only the moss has grow the most so far. Week 2: We planted our other plants (succulent, Jade plant,etc.) and watered our terrarium. The moss is slowly getting greener and greener everyday. Week 3: The moss is growing at a steady rate, but some of its color is fading. All of the other plants are still flourishing. Week 4: Thanksgiving Break. We took it home, but some of the plants we slowing dying because we forgot to water it. The moss' color is faded a lot more. Week 5: Because we didn't water it a lot during break, during the week we watered it a lot to try and bring back life to the plants. |