| Which Color of Light Best Effects the Growth of Radishes? | |
Researched
by Katie W.
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The purpose of this experiment was to determine the effect of different colored lights and the growth rate of radishes.
I became interested in this idea when my mother and I were planting a garden and we wanted to find out what we could do to increase the growth rate.
The information
gained from this experiment may help gardeners/farmers grow plants at a
more rapid pace.
My hypothesis is that red light will increase the growth rate of radishes the most.
I base my hypothesis on a small but similar experiment my homeroom class did with, bean seeds.
The constants for all groups in this experiment were:
- the amount of water a day,
- the size and type of pot,
- the temperature,
- the amount of light,
- the type of soil,
- the kind of radish seeds,
- how deep planted,
- how far apart planted,
The responding variable was the growth of the radishes in centimeters from the tip of the root to the tiptop of the plant.
To measure the responding variable I used a meter stick with centimeter accuracy
| QUANTITY | ITEM DESCRIPTION |
| 56.8 gm | Martin’s Potting Soil |
| Regular Tap Water | |
| 5 | America’s Choice Radish seed packages |
| 3 | Planting Trays |
| 1 | Red roll Colored Cellophane |
| 1 | Green roll Colored Cellophane |
| 1 | Blue roll Colored Cellophane |
| 1 | yellow roll Colored Cellophane |
| 5 | Clear Green House Covers |
| 3 | Water Trays |
1. Collect
all materials
2. Put 56.8
gm of martin’s potting soil in each pot of 24.
3. Plant
2 radish seeds in each pot of soil about 5cm deep and about 5cm apart.
4. Place
red colored cellophane over the clear greenhouse cover taping down sides
so that no unnatural light will pass through.
5. Repeat
step 4 with yellow light.
6. Repeat
step 4 with green light
7. Repeat
step 4 with blue light
8. Label
tray A (that will be under red light) with a small piece of paper on a
toothpick labeled A.
9. Label
tray B (with green light) with a small piece of paper on a toothpick labeled
B
10. Label
tray C )that will be under blue light) with a small piece of paper on a
toothpick labeled C.
11. Label
tray D (that will be under yellow light) with a small piece of paper on
a toothpick labeled D.
12. Label
tray E that will be under regular light with a small piece of paper labeled
E.
13. Place
each colored greenhouse cover (with specific colored cellophane over it)
over each tray.
14. Place
the light directly over the trays so each plant gets the same amount
of light
15. Measure
each day for 3 weeks.
16. After
3 weeks rinse the root from the plant and measure from the very lowest
point of the plant to the very highest point of the plant.
17. Next
you find the average (mean) of each plant under the different colored light.
18. Finally
repeat steps 2-18 for experiment #2
19. Record
all data and organize.
The original purpose of this experiment was to figure out if the color of light would increase the growth rate of radishes.
The results
of the experiment, as indicated in my table and graphs, are the lighter
the color the healthier, stronger, and taller the plant. The colors
of light that had the most effect on the growth of the radishes were
the clear and the yellow light
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My hypothesis was that red light would increase the growth rate of radishes the most.
The results indicate that this hypothesis should be rejected. The lighter the color of the light the better the plant grows of this experiment.
Because of the results of this experiment, I wonder if different radish seeds would change the out come.
If I were to conduct this project again I would use a different kind of seeds and see if the growth is as fast, I would also use more of a variety of colors.
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INTRODUCTION Plants need several things in order to grow. Nutrients (often from soil), water, and light are the essential elements. Light provides the energy that plants must have. Photosynthesis According
to David Hershey in his book Plant Biology Science Projects, "Photosynthesis
is a process by which green plants and other organisms produce simple carbohydrates
from carbon dioxide and hydrogen, using energy that chlorophyll or other
organic cellular pigments absorb from radiant sources."
Plants To grow, plants need fertilizer in order to grow strong, healthy, and have strong roots. Most plants need water at least every other day (depending on the plant type and kind) Radishes Culture: Radishes grow best and taste better if they are grown under cooler temperatures so they can grow fast and constant. Radishes need lots of water, because they don’t do well in dry hot weather. Fertilizer Fertilizer contains plant hormones, vitamins and amino acids which are all things that a plant needs to grow strong, healthy and live a long time. Plant Terms Plant Agriculture:
the study of how plants grow.
Fluorescent light People sometimes
use artificial light to grow many types of plants. In this
project the kind of light used was a fluorescent light so this information
will help inform you more about fluorescent light.
Summary Plants grow better when they are placed under some type of light. Most plants are grown under the sun light outside but there can be exception for the sunlight. In this project the kind of light used was fluorescent light because of the weather conditions. Not all plants can grow as good under unnatural light because of the kind of plant. In this project the type of plants used were radishes, which responded to fluorescent light and indoor conditions. "Fluorescent Lamp" The American Heritage Student Dictionary.1994. p. 392 Helms, Ronald N. "How a Fluorescent Lamp Works" The World Book Encyclopedia. 1995. Vol. F7 pp.305 Hershey, David R. Plant Biology Science Projects, 1995 p. 1-20 http://www.fred.net/alv/radishes.htm http://www.plant-wise.com/info.html
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