Welcome to animal camp day 2!
Today campers learned about vermicompost. Vermi in Latin means worm. All of the pepper groups worked together to make a worm compost bin using newspaper, water, fruit and vegetables scraps, and worms. Why can’t dairy products go in the vermicompost?
The blue pepper group found worm eggs in the old compost bin. What does this tell us about the environment? Are the worms healthy?
Campers learned about good worms (vermicompost worms) and bad worms (parasites) on the farm. What do good worms do? What do bad worms do?
Campers checked for bad worms in the goat population. They used cards with pictures of healthy goat eyes ranging to heavily parasitic goat eyes. Were the goats at Tollgate healthy? How do you know? What causes the animals to get parasites? What can we do to prevent bad worms in our animals? 
Campers learned more about bacteria by playing bacteria tag. The animals wore red bandanas and ran away from the bacteria wearing purple bandanas. The animals were cured by antibiotics wearing rainbow bandanas. At the end of the game, the bacteria became antibiotic resistant and the animals were out of the game if they got tagged.
Why are antibiotics helpful for people and animals? Why does bacteria change when antibiotics are introduced? 
Campers helped take care of the animals today.
The yellow peppers used the wheelbarrow to move dirty bedding from the barn into the compost pile. Good worms and other decomposers will break down the waste into fertilizer.
The orange and blue peppers enjoyed time with the chickens. The orange peppers learned how to look at a chicken’s ear and determine egg color. 
The red peppers helped feed the goats and sheep. Are goats and sheep predators or prey animals? What did campers learn about their eyes? Why are their eyes located on the sides of their head?
The pepper groups took turns in the garden today. This group harvested leeks for birds nests in garden kitchen.
This group harvested lambs quarters in one of the beds. They found other edible weeds along the way.
In the morning, peppers prepared their vegetables for birds nests in the afternoon. They also prepared a blueberry-sun butter smoothie for morning snack. 
Here are the recipes:
Morning: Blueberry-Sunbutter Smoothie
1 ½ – 2 frozen bananas
½ cup frozen blueberries
1 tbsp sunbutter
¾ cup rice milk, or milk of choice
1 tbsp flaxmeal
1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Add ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend until creamy and smooth. If it has trouble blending, add a bit more milk. Taste and adjust flavors as needed.
Afternoon: Veggie Bird Nests
2 leeks, shredded
¼ cabbage, shredded
4-5 medium potatoes
2 eggs slightly beaten
1/3 cup whole-wheat pastry flour or gluten free flour
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
In a large bowl, toss the cut leeks, cabbage, and potatoes to combine. Squeeze firmly 5 or 6 times to slightly wilt them. You may also choose to squeeze them over a colander to drain excess liquid, otherwise it will pool up in the bottom of the bowl.
Add the eggs, flour, salt, and pepper, and mix until well coated.
Next, heat a large skillet or griddle over medium heat and drizzle on enough oil that you can roll it around to coat the bottom of the pan.
Working in batches, drop around 1/3 cup of the mixture into the pan, spreading it a bit to be around 4 inches in diameter. Do as many as you can fit into the pan without letting them touch.
Cook for around 4 minutes on each side, adding a bit more oil to the pan if necessary. They should be tender and a deep golden brown.
Makes approximately 24 mini birds nests
Here are additional photos from today:
https://goo.gl/photos/hna9NroBB6vav8yt5
See you tomorrow for another fun day learning about animals!