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Layna Samuelsen

Mrs. Stevens

Life Science, Period 3

31 January 2018

Does Amount of Air Affect How Strawberries Mold?

Have you ever been in an extremely long line at a smoothie place? Yes, I know that this

doesn’t sound like it has to do with strawberries, but this time, it does. I just hate when you are

super excited because you are about to taste the silky perfection of a good smoothie, but you

end up having to wait forever? Well, this time the long waiting time was due to the fact that

most of their strawberries had molded! Who wants moldy strawberries in their smoothie?

Yuck! Someone must have forgotten to put them in a refrigerator. But they were in a

container? How could they mold? This made me want to experiment on how strawberries

mold when they are still concealed. I think the workers at this smoothie place could use my

results. I hypothesized that ​if I put a strawberries in balloons with a small, medium, or large

amount of air, then the strawberry with the large amount of air will mold faster.

How Does Mold Get on Fruit?

Mold spores travel through air and can easily land on objects such as fruit. When one

plant gets mold, plants nearby will also develop it through the air. They can also travel through

bugs that might eat the fruit or the water that is given to provide nutrients for the plant. Now

fruit is different from things like bread and other dry foods. It is naturally moist, which is a

factor that causes fruit to mold. Also, the moisture provides nutrients that is vital for mold to
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grow. If the fruit is put into a dark shady area, than mold is definitely more likely to grow

(Burk).

What Factors Cause Strawberries to Mold?

Contact with decaying articles, dead leaves, or infected plants can spread mold. If a

strawberry is grow on a week stem, than the fruit will touch the soil with is full of

fertilizer and decaying plants. An infected strawberry that already has developed mold

can spread the mold to other strawberries within a two inch radiance. It is more likely for

objects to mold when they are near each other. If you place a strawberry in a damp, shady

area, then mold will develop quicker and more efficiently. Also, it is key to lightly fertilize

your plants if you don’t want them to mold. (Green)

What Steps are Taken by Growers to Prevent Strawberries From Molding?

There are many precautions taken when growing strawberries. Some strawberries

are grown in plastic tunnels to prevent contact between the fruit and the soil. Also, many

people use straw mulch as a barrier for the strawberry and the dirt. These things are use

to keep the fruit from contact with the fertilizer. Now, strawberry mold spread very

quickly, so some strawberry growers grow their plants one foot apart from each other.

Most growers have to be very careful with the amount of fertilizer they use. Also, they try

to keep the plants in direct sunlight. (Noble)

How Long Will the Mold Take to Grow?

Gray mold is a type of fungi that feeds on dead matter making it a saprotroph. In the book

World of Plants​, Laura Howell says, “As they feed, fungi release powerful chemicals called

enzymes.” Mold generally takes about 1-2 days to mold if stored in room temperature. If
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a strawberry is stored in the refrigerator, the it will last for 5-7 days. Mold will now

commonly grow if a strawberry is stored in a freezer for about 5-8 months. Mold is a

gradual and takes a while to feed during the time when it cannot be seen by the naked

eye. That is approximately how long mold will take to grow.( Howell)

How Do You Accurately Measure Mold Growth?

You cannot measure mold with depth or width. The easiest way to measure mold

is with using a grid. The most simple way to do it is to just draw a grid on transparent

paper and measure in units. Some people even use electronics. They take a picture of the

mold and paste a grid on it. The answer is then labeled in units squared. (JMP)

How Would I Measure the Amount of Air in a Balloon?

There are many ways to measure air in a balloon. The most efficient way to do it is

to use a bucket, a tub, and of course, a balloon. You would first place the balloon in a

bucket filled to the top with water. The next step would be to put the bucket and balloon

in a large tub. Then, press the balloon all the way into the bucket and see how much

water overflows into the tub. Lastly, just covert the water to air units. It’s as easy as that.

(Babybunnyfx)

I hypothesized that ​if I put strawberries in balloons with a small, medium, or large

amount of air, the strawberry in the balloon with the large amount of air will mold faster.

My hypothesis was correct! The strawberry in the balloon with the largest amount of air

began to mold before the others. The strawberry first began to dry out, and then you

could see small tints of grey mold starting to form. The strawberry with the smallest

amount of air actually appeared to have more mold on it at the end, but the strawberry in
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the largest balloon produced mold first. Each trial showed the same results, so I know for

a fact that these results are reasonable. Therefore, when I put strawberries in balloons

with a small, medium, or large amount of air, the strawberry in the balloon with the large

amount of air molded faster.

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Work Cited

Babybunnyfx. “How to Measure the Volume of a Balloon.” WonderHowTo, WonderHowTo, 2

May 2010, science.wonderhowto.com/how-to/measure-volume-balloon-357475/

Burk , Kristen. “What Causes Fruits to Mold?” Healthy Living,

healthyliving.azcentral.com/what-causes-fruits-to-mold-12508950.html.

Green, Jenny. “What Causes Strawberries to Mold?” Hunker.com, Hunker, 12 Apr. 2017,

www.hunker.com/12201592/kangaroo-paw-plant-care

“How Long Do Strawberries Last? Shelf Life, Storage, Expiration.” Eat By Date, EatByDate

LLC., 2012, ​www.eatbydate.com/fruits/fresh/how-long-do-strawberries-last/

Howell, Laura, et al. “World of Plants.” World of Plants, Usborne Pub., 2006, pp. 42–43

JMP. “Ask an Expert: Measuring Bread Mold.” Science Buddies, Forum Software © PhpBB

Limited, 9 Oct. 2013, 3:34,

www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/ask-an-expert/viewtopic.php?t=12251​.

Noble, Dorthy. “Stop Gray Mold on Strawberries.” Growing, Grand View Media, 25 June

2015, ​www.growingmagazine.com/fruits/stop-gray-mold-on-strawberries/​.