GENERAL BOTANY 1101L 18 JAN 2020

NAME: OLARTE, Princess M. STUDENT NO.: 202001819

CLASS AND SECTION: BS Biology 1-3
Faculty: MR. SAMUEL BRILLO

A C T I V I T Y 10
Xylem Conduction

Objectives:

• Demonstrate xylem conduction using plant parts through laboratory set-up

• Analyze rate of xylem conduction due to transpiration
• Identify factors affecting rate of xylem conduction

Guide Questions:

1. When you examined the cut surfaces of the celery stalk after soaking in the dye, what
parts are colored?
• stalk and leaves
2. Did the food coloring spread into the leaves? How did the food coloring move up the
celery?
• Yes, the food coloring spread into the leaves.
• The water with food coloring traveled up the stem of the plant through long, thin
tubes called xylem. The water moved up these tubes through a process called
capillary action.
3. Sketch the cross section of a celery stalk and indicate the location of the xylem vessels.

xylem

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4. How will you compare the rate of xylem conduction in procedure 6 and 7? In which set-
up did the meniscus move faster? Why?
• The rate of xylem conduction in still air is low (meniscus movement is low). This
is because humidity may build up around the plant from transpiration, eventually
decreasing the amount of water being released.
• The rate of xylem conduction in wind is high (meniscus movement is high);
because the wind causes the air to be constantly replaced, allowing the plant to
transpire more.
5. If the plant was placed in complete darkness or a reduced light setting for 15 minutes,
how would this affect water movement in the tube? Why?
• The rate of water movement will become slow. Plants transpire more rapidly in
the light than in dark, because water evaporates more rapidly as the
temperature rises.
6. Besides transpiration, what other factors affect water movement in plants?
• Temperature
• Light intensity
• Humidity
• Wind speed

Summary

Every living thing needs water to survive and plants are able to transport water around
it, by going through a vascular tissue called xylem. Xylem is the one that conducts water and
dissolved nutrients upwards, from the roots to the rest of the plant. This process is called xylem
conduction. In this activity, this conduction was proven to have occurred within the xylem. It
was observed that the xylem vessels of the celery stalk were the ones that had intense pigment
from the food coloring, hence proving that the water conduction does happen along the
xylem.

The process of xylem conduction comes with transpiration. Transpiration is the loss of
water by evaporation, usually through the stomata in leaves. This process is usually initiated by
a higher water potential inside the cells of a plant than in the environment surrounding it. This
higher potential inside the plant launches the process of osmosis to occur, moving water into
the mesophyll cells. All plants do not transpire at the same rates while under different
conditions. The factors could include temperature, light intensity, humidity, and wind speed.

G E N E R A L B O T A N Y L A B O R A T O R Y A C T I V I T Y 10
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References:

BBC. (2021). Transport in plants. Retrieved from

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zps82hv/revision/4

Castle, S. (2019). Measurement of Transpiration Rates using a Potometer. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXocZZDDPaw&t=261s

Kerr, S. (2020). Water Transport in Plants: Xylem. Retrieved from

http://organismalbio.biosci.gatech.edu/nutrition-transport-and-homeostasis/plant-
transport-processes-i/

SciShow Kids. (2015). The Color-Changing Celery Experiment. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIug9Foou3s

VanSomeren, L. (2016). How does water move in plants. Retrieved from

https://untamedscience.com/biology/plants/water-transport-experiment/

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Xylem Conduction
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Appendix

from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIug9Foou3s

from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXocZZDDPaw&t=261s

G E N E R A L B O T A N Y L A B O R A T O R Y A C T I V I T Y 10
Xylem Conduction