Do seeds grow faster with more sun

Do seeds grow faster with more sun

You can pick the type of seed (should be fast growing), and the parameter to change (light, water, etc.)

– You will pick an experiment from a list, write a design for it, and run the experiment over the course of several weeks. You will collect and interpret data, make graphs, and finally write up a scientific report on your experiment. It should include all the parts of a typical research paper including abstract, introduction and statement, limitations of your study, methods and materials, the main body of the paper, data, charts & graphs, and a conclusion. Like all your other assignments, it should be written in clear, easy to read English with no spelling or grammatical errors. Don’t forget to include charts or graphs! I will be grading on the following criteria:

1. Your experiment is on one of the allowed topics.

2. The format is correct, including clearly defined topical areas such as materials & methods, results, discussion.

3. Be sure to include your hypothesis, including a null hypothesis.

4. Discuss your experimental design in methods & materials.

5. Show your results in a table, be sure to include graphs for your data.

6. Be sure to actually discuss what you learned in your conclusion – and what you would do differently if you tried this again.

7. Use proper English, including grammar and spelling.

I attached the best example of this assignment, but my won’t similar with that.

and also I attached my planner below.

I. Abstract

For this project I wanted to see how different amounts of water would affect the growth of cilantro seeds. I thought that plants would grow taller if they received more water. I hypothesized that if the amount of water given to a plant was increased, then the height of the plant would also increase. Using ice cube trays and a measuring spoon to water the cilantro seeds, I allowed each seed a chance to grow for over two weeks. After the allotted time, I measured each plant and came to a surprising conclusion that more water doesn’t always equal better results. It’s common to think that less water will cause plants to grow less. In fact, the results of this experiment showed me that too much water can prevent cilantro seeds from growing at all.

II. Methods & Materials

The type of seeds used for this experiment were cilantro seeds all from the same packet. Many online articles suggest soaking cilantro seeds in water overnight before planting, so that’s what I did. I placed all the seeds in a small plastic container and filled it halfway with water, making sure to cover all the seeds completely. The seeds were left in the water for twelve hours overnight. The next day, I removed all seeds from the water and split into thirty-two groups. I was able to make thirty-two groups of five seeds each. For this experiment, two ice cube trays were used to hold the seeds as they grew. Each tray had sixteen slots, eight on each side. The same type of potting soil was used in each slot, Miracle Grow Potting Soil, along with the five cilantro seeds that had been soaked in water over night. Each slot had two tablespoons of potting soil with one teaspoon of water mixed into it to start. One tablespoon of the soil and water mixture on bottom, followed by the seeds, then another tablespoon of the soil and water mixture on top of the seeds. This was done thirty-two times until each slot in both ice cube trays had been filled.

At this time, groups were selected at random by my assistants (daughters) by them taking turns choosing numbers between one and eight until all numbers had been used for a row. This process was repeated four times, once per side of each tray. These groups represented the amount of water to be given to each slot, our independent variable. Using toothpicks with little paper labels taped to them, I placed them into their designated slot in the tray. Group four is the control group. Group four will be given one teaspoon, four ¼ teaspoons, of water every other day. The trays of seeds would be watered every other day at 12:00 PM Eastern Standard Time. All water will come from the kitchen faucet and will be measured with the same ¼ teaspoon measuring spoon. The trays containing the experiment will be kept on a windowsill in my kitchen that receives morning sunlight.

July 10th, 2018 was the first day of watering each slot with the designated amount of water. Using the same ¼ teaspoon measuring spoon each time, each unit was watered with the correct amount of water labeled on the toothpick in the slot. Group number one was given one ¼ teaspoon of water, group number four was given four ¼ teaspoons of water, and so on. There had been no change yet. Since the first watering happened on the 10th, an even day, all watering would happen on an even day, and odd days would not have water. I used a basic ruler with inches on one side and centimeters on the other to measure the growth of the plants, the dependent variable. I used the centimeter side of the ruler because it gave me the most accurate measurements. I was able to measure to 1/10 of a centimeter.

III. Data, Charts & Analysis

Below is the data I acquired during this experiment. Table 1 shows the height measurements in centimeters collected for each plant in the ice cube trays, and the average height of each group. I was able to create a visual representation of this data in Figure 1. Figure 2 shows the measurements in a plotted version that is interesting to me. Figure 3 actually reminds me of measuring the plants because the long green “stems” look like the ones the plants have.” This graph is very simple and easy to read, but kind of boring in my opinion. I prefer Table 1 and Figure 1. Still simple, but a little more detailed in my opinion.

Table 1

Group Number	Tray 1, Row 1	Tray 1, Row 2	Tray 2, Row 1	Tray 2, Row 2	Average Height
Group 1	7 cm	No Growth	8.3 cm	7.2 cm	5.625 cm
Group 2	7.8 cm	5.7 cm	7.5 cm	8.6 cm	7.4 cm
Group 3	3.3 cm	No Growth	6.3 cm	0.1 cm	2.425 cm
Group 4	No Growth	2.9 cm	0.5 cm	1.6 cm	1.25 cm
Group 5	No Growth	No Growth	No Growth	No Growth	0 cm
Group 6	No Growth	No Growth	0.1 cm	No Growth	0.025 cm
Group 7	No Growth	2.5 cm	No Growth	0.6 cm	0.775 cm
Group 8	No Growth	No Growth	No Growth	No Growth	0 cm

Table 1: Shows the measurements taken for each slot and the average height of each group. (Above.)

Figure 1: Shows the average height (black line) in centimeters compared to the measurements of each group at the end of the trial. (Below.)

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 2: Shows the height in centimeters as plotted points for each seedling at the end of the trial.

Figure 3

Figure 3: Shows the exact measurement for each individual plant at the end of the trial as measured to the closest 1/10th centimeter.

IV. Results & Discussion

After sixteen days of growing cilantro from seeds, it was time to measure and record the results. I found that group one had an average height of 5.6 centimeters, while our control, group four, had an average height of 1.3 centimeters. Both of these groups had one out of four seeds that did not grow. Group five and eight did not show any signs of growth for any of their seeds. The only group that had all four subjects sprout was group two, the group receiving ½ teaspoon of water every other day.

My hypothesis stated that if the amount of water given to each plant is increased, then the height of the plant would also increase. I think it’s safe to say that the results do not support my hypothesis. The results show that the plants watered with ¼ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of water had a better survival rate than those plants that received greater than 1 teaspoon of water. My control group, group four, had three out of four seeds grow, but the height of those plants seemed very small compared to groups one and two. Even group three’s average height was twice as tall as group four’s average height. I found it interesting that group five had no survivors, while group seven, who looked like mud soup the whole time, had two. Before the stems started to break through, I thought that group one looked too dry and I was worried that the seeds in group one would not grow. Looking at my data collected, I’d say the results show that there is such a thing as too much water when it comes to growing plants.

The null hypothesis for this experiment was that less water would hinder a plant’s successful growth. After analyzing the data, I disproved my original hypothesis and proved the null hypothesis to be true in this case. I do not think that this would be correct for every type of plant with this specific amount of water, however.

Before the experiment began, I had already realized the mistake I’d made during the experimental design process. I originally designed this experiment using my prior experience of growing plants in Idaho, not thinking about how much different my new home actually was in terms of climate. During the design process, I did not take into consideration how different the humid North Carolina climate would be compared to the brutally dry Idaho summers I was used to. In Idaho when I would grow vegetables in the summer, I would have to be habitual in watering schedules otherwise my plants would wither and die in as little as one day without proper water. I went from an average daily humidity in Idaho of about 55% to an average daily humidity in North Carolina of about 90%. That plays a very large role in the amount of water needed by plants, especially baby ones. With all the information I had gathered since designing the experiment, I decided that it would be better to water the seeds every other day at noon instead of every day at noon to keep the tray slots from overflowing into each other.

If I were going to try this experiment again, I would limit the number of groups to four while still using both ice cube trays, and keep in mind the air quality in my area. This would give me four groups of different water amounts but eight test subjects in each group for a larger sample size. I think I had too few plants in each group to get very precise results. I would also take measurements throughout the experiment, perhaps at one-week intervals, so I could see how each group compares over the course of the experiment. I do wonder how my results would differ had done this in Idaho weather!

V. References

· All about Cilantro by Burpee

https://www.burpee.com/gardenadvicecenter/herbs/cilantro/all-about-cilantro/article10222.html

· Annual Average Humidity in Idaho

https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/Idaho/humidity-annual.php

· Annual Average Humidity in North Carolina

https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/North-Carolina/humidity-annual.php

· How to Grow Cilantro from Seeds by Tropical Permaculture

https://www.tropicalpermaculture.com/growing-cilantro.html

· Tips for Growing Cilantro by Heather Rhoades

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/herbs/cilantro/tips-for-growing-cilantro.htm

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