PURPOSE
The purpose of this experiment was to determine whether
plants grow better in water or soil.
I became interested in this idea when I started my experiment
last year, and looking through books for research.
The information gained from this experiment will help
gardeners know how to grow their plants healthier, taller, and faster.
HYPOTHESIS
My hypotheses are that the vegetables will grow better
in water, the flowers will grow better in soil, and the grass will grow
equally well in both.
I base my hypothesis on the science books I got an idea
from, because when I started my research all the books and encyclopedias
said the same things about hydroponics.
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EXPERIMENT DESIGN
The constants in this study were:
-Same kinds of seeds
-Same kind of water
-Same amount of water
-Same kind of cups
-Same size of cups
The manipulated variable was growing the plant in water
or soil
The responding variable was the plants mass and total
length.
To measure the responding variable I will measure the
length in millimeters using a ruler, and the mass in milligrams using a
triple beam balance.
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MATERIALS
QUANTITY |
ITEM DESCRIPTION |
1 package |
Radish seeds |
| 1 package |
Cucumber seeds |
1 package |
Snapdragons seeds |
1 package |
Batchlers Button seeds |
| 100 seeds |
Lawn grass seeds |
| 10 |
Plastic cups |
| 1 |
Spray Bottle |
|
Potting Soil |
|
Water |
|
Sand
|
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POCEDURES
1. First gather all materials to begin experiment
2. Then place soil in 5 cups about 5cm high with potting
soil
3. place white purified sand in 5 other cups about cm
high
4. next place 5 radish seeds in one of the soil
cups and 5 seeds In one of the sand cups, label them "radishes"
5. place 5 cucumber seeds in another cup filled with
soil and 5 seeds in one of the sand-filled cups and label those two cups
"cucumbers"
6. place 5 snapdragon seeds in one of the soil filled
cups and 5 seeds in one of the soil-filled cups and label them "snapdragons"
7. place 50 grass seeds in one of the sand-filled cups
and 5 seeds in one of the soil-filled cups label both of them "grass"
8. place 5 batchlers bottens in the last soil-filled
cup and 5more seeds in the last sand cup label them "batchlers bottens"
9. after that carefully pour 200ml of water in the sand-filled
cups trying not to stir up the seeds and sand
10. water everyday the soil-filled plants
with 50ml a day
11. make sure that the hydroponics have 200ml of water
all the time
12. record the plant growth for 5 weeks and record the
data
13. on the 35th day pull the plants and get all the dirt
off so it will be a more constant mass
14. measure the mass and length of the plants by a millimeter
ruler, and the mass with a triple beam balance
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RESULTS
The original purpose of this experiment was to determine
whether plants grew better in water or soil.
The results of the experiment were, radishes grew better
in soil by , cucumbers grew better in soil, grass grew in both but
better in soil, bachelor's buttons grew better in soil, and snapdragons
grew better in soil.
See the tables and graphs on next page.
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CONCLUSION
My hypotheses were that the vegetables will grow better
in water, the flowers will grow better in soil, and the grass will grow
equally well in both.
The results indicate that the vegetables didn't grow
better in water so this part of the hypothesis should be rejected. The
flowers grew better in soil so this hypothesis should be accepted. I thought
the grass would grow equally well in both water and soil, but it grew much
better in soil so my 3rd hypothesis should be rejected.
Because of the results of this experiment, I wonder if
plants would grow equally well in soil and water with fertilizer.
If I were to conduct this project again I would grow
a wider varity of plants to get a more accurate idea of which plants grow
better in water or soil.
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RESEARCH
REPORT
INTRODUCTION
Have you ever wondered if plants grow better in water
or soil? Well in this experiment you will learn all about the plants, and
what kind of habitat that they adapt to (live in water or soil).
Waters
Water is one of the most important things to all living
things, especially plants, because plants don't eat food like animals.
Water is made out of two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen, when
those three atoms combine you get a water molecule. That may not be much,
but mix lots and you can get a glass full of water, and you can water lots
of plants with one glass of water. Every living thing on earth needs water
to survive, and they get water from many sources. You can get water from
the ocean, lakes, streams, snow, glaciers, rain, hail, and more.
Soil
Soil is one of the most important things to plants. Soil
is made up of broken down rocks and minerals, eventually in about a century
the soil will form. You just have to have the right climate, good land
surface features, and a lot of time. The soil provides plants with special
nutrients that help the plants grow faster and bigger. The soil also helps
the plants grow in another way, it covers the roots. You may plant the
seeds in the dirt, but then the stem grows up and out of the soil. But
the plant would die if the roots were not covered. Plants "eat" through
their roots, so soil is one of the most important things to grow a plant.
Hydroponics
Hydroponics is the artificial way to grow plants. It
was developed in the 1860s by the man named Julius Von Sachs. The theory
of hydroponics became a scientific fact once other scientists proved it
could be done. Hydroponics was a very good idea, but you had to put sand
like grains in the bottom of the pot, so it can work like the soil, and
help the roots. In the 1930s people started to grow large crops hydroponicaly.
Now the scientific method of hydroponics is used all around in experiments,
and in crops.
Plants
Plants are grown all around the world, for food and decoration.
This experiment involves radishes, green beans, grass, bachelors buttons,
and snapdragons. Green beans and radishes represent food plants and
herb plants, the snapdragons and bachelors buttons are examples of flowers,
and the grass is a common land covering. Plants are an important
part of the food chain, and humans couldnt live if they didnt have plants.
Some people dont have good soil, so they could grow plants in water. Using
these plants wont show if all plants grow in water, but will tell about
the majority of plants.
SUMMARY
In conclusion plants can now grow in water instead of
soil, and still serve their purpose.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
"Hydroponics," World Wide Encyclopedia, 1995
"Radishes," Academic American Encyclopedia, 1998
"Radishes," Encyclopedia America, 1999
"Radishes," World Wide Encyclopedia, 1999
Gardner, Robert, "Experimenting with Water"
"Soil," Cynthia Fujii, World Book Encyclopedia, 1995
Soil and Plants @metrocraller.com
Sally Morgan, Water
"Water," World Book Encyclopedia, 1999 |
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