Radish Lab Report

Molly Kade 12-2-13 Block

Question If we grow radish seeds in light and dark, what will their final biomass be after one week, and how does that relate to photosynthesis and respiration in plants? Procedure 1. Place 4 layers of paper towels in a petri dish. 2. Measure out 0.5 g of radish seeds and sprinkle over the petri dishs surface. 3. Repeat steps 1-2 one more time, so that you have s test plate for each variable. 4. Place one petri dish in darkness, and the other in light. 5. Water each dish of seeds 10ml of water per day over the course of 7 days. 6. After 7 days, remove all seedlings and biotic matter from your dishes and place treatment groups biomass in a separate envelope (light and dark). Make sure you label them. 7. Put the envelopes in a dehydrator for 24hrs. 8. After 24 hours, weigh the envelopes of seeds. Subtract the weight of the empty envelopes to determine total final biomass. Hypothesis If we place 0.5g of radish seeds in light and dark and let them grow, then the ones in light will grow a lot more than the dark ones, who will grow a little, because a majority of plants require light to photosynthesize and gain biomass.

Data/Analysis

Average Heights of Seedlings in Centimeters of Light and Dark Groups

5 4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 Av. Max Dark Height (cm) Av. Max Light Height (cm)

Average Max. Height (cm)

Axis Title

Surprisingly, the dark seedlings outgrew the light ones on average. The average light seedling height was approximately 1.4 cm. On the other hand, the dark plants were drastically taller, averaging about 4.6 cm tall.

Average Final Biomass in Grams for Light and Dark Seedlings

0.3 Average Final Biomass (g) 0.2 0.1 0 Av. Dark Final Biomass (g) -0.1 -0.2 Light and Dark Seedlings Av. Light Final Biomass (g)

The dark seedlings outgrew the light ones, but surprisingly lost biomass. They all started out with .5 g of biomass (in the seed weight), but once they grew, they were averaging around

3.6 g. On the other hand, the light groups biomass increased to about 0.75 g. this may seem surprising, considering dark was taller, but the light seedlings may have been shorter and denser than they were tall. Results The dark batch of seedlings ended up growing taller than the light group, but lost biomass in the end. The dark seedlings outgrew the light ones on average and per treatment. The average light seedling height was approximately 1.4 cm. On the other hand, the dark plants were taller, averaging about 4.6 cm tall. The dark seedlings outgrew the light ones, but surprisingly lost biomass. They all started out with .5 g of biomass (in the seed weight), but once they grew, they were averaging around 3.6 g. On the other hand, the light groups biomass increased to about 0.75 g. this may seem surprising, considering dark was taller. The light seedlings were shorter and denser than they were tall. The dark seedlings outgrew the light ones, but lost biomass. The dark grown seedlings all started out with .5 g of biomass (in the seed weight), but once they grew, they were averaging around 3.6 g. On the other hand, the light grown seedlings average biomass increased to about 0.75 g. this may seem surprising, considering dark was taller, but the light seedlings may have been shorter and denser than they were tall.

Discussion My hypothesis was both correct and incorrect. I predicted that the dark seedlings would produce some growth, but not as much as the light group. However, the dark group ended up tallest on average, at approximately 4.6 cm tall. On the other hand, the dark group also lost

weight in the end, proving my hypothesis correct. Half of our data supported my prediction, while the other half did not. I found this information quite surprising. I thought it was fascinating that the dark group of seedlings did actually grow. I also was intrigued by the fact that our light treatment group turned a bright green, and our dark treatment group stayed a dull, faded yellowish hue. I think this is due to the fact that the light group was allowed to photosynthesize, and therefore released chlorophyll throughout the plant and turned green. Our data shows that plants do respire and photosynthesize. They gained biomass and were green, at least in the light group, which are both prime indicators of photosynthesis. Because they lost weight, we know they were respiring. The plant took weighted energy from inside the seed, and released it in respiration- this caused them to lose weight. Conclusion Our original question was concerning whether or not radishes will grow effectively in darkness and light. We learned that radish seeds will grow fairly well in the dark. In fact, they will even grow taller in the shadows than bright light. I think we have had a small source of error in our data collection, because we may not have dehydrated the seedlings for long enough. Also, there may have been slight inaccuracy in our scales precision, and we may have lost a few sprouts in the transfer. I think if I were to repeat this experiment again, there are a few things I would change about it. I would let the seedlings grow for longer, more like a month, and see if it affects my data set. I would also like to try placing TZ on the seedlings during the growth process and using the TZ as another indicator of respiration other than loss in biomass. TZ turns red in the presence of a gaseous byproduct of respiration inside of the seedling.