| In this elementary science fair project we are going to | | | | 2. Plant your grass seeds in this cake tin. |
| find out what can be done to prevent soil erosion. I | | | | 3. Water this tin thoroughly with water. |
| think we all know that soil erosion is a very big problem | | | | 4. Place this tin in a sunny spot where the grass can |
| all over the world. | | | | grow well. |
| Here are some of the Scary Facts: | | | | 5. Now you have to gently water your seeds and |
| - Did you know that the worlds' deserts grows by | | | | make sure that the soil in the pan is moist at all times |
| about 16 000square miles a year? | | | | without over watering. |
| - In the US alone about 7 billion tones of very valuable | | | | 6. Wait for your grass to grow about 3 inches high. |
| topsoil is eroded by streams and rivers, as they carry | | | | 7. Fill up the other cake tin with soil. |
| the topsoil away. | | | | 8. Water it just enough to be as moist as the tin with |
| - Did you know that about 75% of the rocks on earth | | | | your grass in it. |
| are made up of small grains and particles that are | | | | 9. Now you have to place the one end of both your |
| pressed together under the weight of tons of water | | | | tins on your books to make them lie at an angle. |
| over very long periods? These rocks are called | | | | 10. Fill your jug with water and pour the water down |
| "sedimentary rocks." | | | | the cake tin without the grass. |
| This is a really worrying situation, don't you agree? | | | | 11. Note what happens. |
| Well in this elementary science fair project we are | | | | 12. Now you pour the water down the cake tin with |
| going to be looking at one of the methods we can use | | | | the grass growing in it. |
| to prevent this. We are going to do an elementary | | | | 13. Make a note of what happens. |
| science fair project to find out whether planting grass | | | | 14. What is the difference? |
| or other plants in areas with a lot of erosion can help. | | | | 15. What is the reason for the difference?. |
| What you will need for this science experiment: | | | | 16. write down your explanation. |
| - Some easy growing grass seeds | | | | What happens here is that in the pan without grass |
| - Two rectangular cake pans | | | | the some of the dirt is carried away with the water. |
| - 2 Tick books of the same size | | | | This is what happens in nature in places where there is |
| - Enough soil to fill the pans | | | | nothing to stem the flow of water. In the pan with the |
| - A jug to pour the water with | | | | grass growing in it, the grass stems the flow of the |
| - Water | | | | water and less soil is carried away with the water. So, |
| What you have to do | | | | by planting indigenous grass and other indigenous |
| | | | plants in areas where soil erosion is a problem, the soil |
| 1. First of all you have to fill one of your cake tins with | | | | erosion can be slowed down. |
| the soil. | | | | |