Seed Germination Lab Report

Abstract:

The purpose of this lab was to try and see how liquid chlorophyll affects seed germination, and whether water, chlorophyll, or a mixture of both would create a larger sprout. This is significant because in a plant, chlorophyll helps produce the food, so by supplying it for the plant, we wanted to know if it would affect the growth. As a result of this seed germination lab, added chlorophyll did not affect the growth of the seeds at all, leaving the only plant with 10 ml of water to grow up to 4cm tall. The rest of this report will share our results, data, and intentions put into this project.

Introduction:

In our experiment, we started out with our question, can liquid chlorophyll increase plant growth? After that, we researched the chlorophyll online, and we bought 16 fl oz of chlorofresh at Sprouts.  We went on to make our hypothesis, if chlorophyll is vital in photosynthesis, then added chlorophyll would reduce the amount of time the plant needed to grow. Then, we gathered our materials and put our Brassica oleracea in three pots of soil, and sprayed each with 10 ml of water, 10 ml of chlorophyll, and 10 ml of both equally at 5 ml each. Concluding the whole experiment, the plant with all water grew to 4cm tall, as both of the others with chlorophyll did not grow. To conclude with our hypothesis, the added chlorophyll did not affect the Brassica oleracea at all, proving a negative response to our hypothesis.

Materials:

• Aluminum foil
• Cabbage seeds
• Soil
• 2 Beakers
• Chlorofresh Liquid Chlorophyll
• 3 Syringes
• 3 Small planting pots
• Paper towels

Experimental Procedure :

1. Research, buy, and gather all materials needed, including Chlorofresh (liquid chlorophyll), three pots from Mr. Bursch, soil, and   seeds.
2. Clean out planting pots and all materials.
3. Pour soil into planting pots. (approximately half way)
4. Place five seeds approximately 1 ½ cm down into the soil for each pot.
5. Apply aluminum foil on the outside of the pots to prevent leaking.
6. Label the planting pots. One pot will be labelled Water, the other will be Half and Half , and then Saturated.
7. Apply 10 ml of water to one pot, 10 ml of chlorophyll to another, and 5ml of chlorophyll and 5 ml of water to the final pot, each day as we enter the classroom.
8. Every time we enter science class, check and record the growth of each pot.
9. Write the lab report and publish blog posts.

Results:

After the Thursday that we planted each of the solutions, on the first and second day we checked, we did not receive any growth for the plants. Eventually, on Thursday, September 7th, the control experiment grew 1.7cm. Then on Monday, September 11th, still the control, grew to 3 cm, and on Tuesday, September 12th, our final result was 4 cm for the control, and no growth for the other two solutions. We recorded for exactly three days, each watered with its appropriate solution, and the pot with the water grew to 4 cm as the others received no growth, both of those including added chlorophyll. Below are the results of the experiment in both a chart and graph showing the seed germination.

	Water	Half and Half	Saturated
Day 1	1.7	0	0
Day 2	3	0	0
Day 3	4	0	0

Discussion:

Honestly, we are not fully sure why we did not receive the results that we originally believed. Our group was discussing how the added glycerin located in the liquid chlorophyll may have stunted the plants’ growth, but we are still unsure. Our hypothesis was not supported due to how the Brassica with the added chlorophyll did not show any growth results, not causing the plant to grow at any rate. We were very surprised as to see that the chlorophyll had no effect on the seeds, even including a partial amount of water. In our opinion, we correctly undertook our experiment, measuring carefully and being aware of our process, one step after the other. Each day, we recorded the data, measuring the length to the exact centimeter measurement. Our strengths were our determination, involvement in each and every step, and our ability to work together as a team. We could improve on our preciseness, and neatness, as there was an interesting amount of small spills and us having to clean excessively. This is significant to the real world because say if a plant isn’t growing, and someone thinks that adding chlorophyll can give the plant a growth boost, the chlorophyll would not affect  the plant, as shown in our findings.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, our cabbage plants did not have an increase in growth by giving them additional chlorophyll. The variable of having glycerin in the liquid chlorophyll may have affected the way the plants grew. The plant that had no additional chlorophyll grew the most out of all of the plants. Perhaps if we use a different type or brand of liquid chlorophyll we may see different results. This will then result to having cabbage grow faster.

Sources

Babcock, J. (2017, June 15). This Plant Pigment Heals & Detoxes Better than All Others. Retrieved September 14, 2017, from https://draxe.com/chlorophyll-benefits