Factors Affecting Seed Germination Lab free essay sample

Affecting Seed Germination Research Question What is the effect of dark and light on the germination of radish seeds? Hypothesis I predict the seeds grown in the light will germinate twice as much as the ones grown in the dark. Materials/Setup Paper towels 2 petri dishes 10 radish seeds Water Plastic container A weight A folded piece of paper Procedure 1. Take a paper towel and cut out two circles that are the same size as the base of the petri dishes. 2. Wet each paper towel circle with 5mL of water. 3. Put one wet circle into each petri dish and create raised ridges in the paper towel, creating a valley for each of the five seeds. 4. Put one seed in each valley. In the end, there should be 5 seeds in each petri dish. 5. Put the lids on the petri dishes and put into the plastic container. 6. Put the container near a window. 7. Cover one petri dish with a thickly folded piece of paper that covers the entire dish, and place a weight on top to secure the paper in place. We will write a custom essay sample on Factors Affecting Seed Germination Lab or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 8. Note which petri dish is experimental, and which is control. In this case, the one covered with the paper is experimental, while the regular dish is control. ) 9. Leave experiment and observe changes daily. Data Control Experimental Seed #| Tues. | Wed. | Thurs. | Fri. | | Seed #| Tues. | Wed. | Thurs. | Fri. | 1| 0mm| 0mm| 16mm| 38mm| | 1| 0mm| 0mm| 2mm| 20mm| 2| 0mm| 0mm| 6mm| 12mm| | 2| 0mm| 0mm| 3mm| 17mm| 3| 0mm| 3mm| 36mm| 58mm| | 3| 0mm| 8mm| 17mm| 40mm| 4| 0mm| 12mm| 58mm| 76mm| | 4| 0mm| 1mm| 15mm| 37mm| 5| 0mm| 4mm| 21mm| 50mm| | 5| 0mm| 0mm| 2mm| 15mm| Average| 0mm| 3. 8mm| 27. 4mm| 46. 8mm| | Average| 0mm| 1. 8mm| 7. 8mm| 25. 8mm| Observations The seeds in the light grew approximately twice as much as the seeds in the dark. * Some of the seeds grew fuzzy root-like things, which kind of looked like little white leaves, to help it collect more water. * After we put in 5mL the first day, we had to add about 2. 5mL everyday afterwards to make our plants grow. * The seeds near the centre of the paper towel would grow more than the ones in the outer parts of the paper towel because more water collected in the center. * The experimental seeds were not always in the dark because they were exposed to light when we had to measure and water those seeds. The measurements may not be accurate because we had to use a straight ruler to measure our plants, which may cause our results to be incorrect by a few millimeters. Discussion A possible source of error I had in my experiment was when measuring the plants. I had to use a straight ruler to measure the very flexible and curved roots of the plants, which was not easy to do with a straight edge. When I measured the plants, I had to be very careful with being accurate, an d despite my best efforts, the accuracy may not have been perfect. Also, another source of error I might have had during this experiment was that the experimental seeds may not have completely been in the dark. All that was used to create â€Å"dark† for those seeds was a slightly raised piece of folded paper. Some of the sun’s light could have reached the experimental seeds, causing a discrepancy in the result. One problem I had in this experiment was that there was no ledge where a lot of sunlight could reach the plants. Instead, the plants were only able to grow in low sunlight, which may have affected the size that the control plants could have possibly reached. It is likely that the control seeds could have germinated much more. However, a source of error I feel was controlled in this experiment was that the plants were all measured around the same time everyday. After finishing the entire lab experiment, I find that those were the only big problems I had. If I were to improve this experiment, though, I would find a good window ledge, buy a tape measure and have a better object to block the experimental seeds from the sun. Other than these factors, I feel this lab went very successfully and that the results were reasonably accurate. Conclusions Therefore, I was correct in my hypothesis that dark will have an effect on the germination of radish seeds. Also, I was very close in predicting that the seeds grown in the light will germinate twice as much as the seeds grown in the dark; the control seeds grew a little less than double the size of the experimental seeds. Ultimately, my experiment proved that light is a very important factor in the growth of any plant. However, I’ve learned that seeds grown in the dark will germinate, though slowly, as well.