Term Project Second Semester
Question: What kind of water will work best to germinate grass seeds: tap water, ocean water or rain water?
Hypothesis: If I test rain water, tap water and ocean water for seed germination, then I believe that rain water will be the most effective because it's the closest to what would happen naturally.
Materials:
-3 small pots
-30 grass seeds out of a packet
-labels for all three pots
-soil
-something to gather rain water from (I used an empty mason jar)
-a large jar of ocean water and tap water
*my ocean water is from Priest Point Park
Procedure:
1. acquire materials (either collect enough water to last for the whole experiment or be prepared to collect water as needed)
2. label pots as "OCEAN", "TAP" and "RAIN"
3. plant ten grass seeds about an inch deep into the soil in each pot
4. place in direct sunlight
5. water once daily for the duration of the experiment
6. measure the height of grass once a week and record
7. keep recording weekly for three weeks
*number of grass seeds can be changed, but keep approximately the same amount in each pot.
Controlled Variables: same soil, same pots, same kind of plant (grass)
Independent Variable: Kind of water: tap, ocean or rain
Dependent Variable: Amount of growth in inches
Experimental Control: grass in the lawn because it's growing naturally
Safety Requirements: pretty much none, use common sense.
Data:
Hypothesis: If I test rain water, tap water and ocean water for seed germination, then I believe that rain water will be the most effective because it's the closest to what would happen naturally.
Materials:
-3 small pots
-30 grass seeds out of a packet
-labels for all three pots
-soil
-something to gather rain water from (I used an empty mason jar)
-a large jar of ocean water and tap water
*my ocean water is from Priest Point Park
Procedure:
1. acquire materials (either collect enough water to last for the whole experiment or be prepared to collect water as needed)
2. label pots as "OCEAN", "TAP" and "RAIN"
3. plant ten grass seeds about an inch deep into the soil in each pot
4. place in direct sunlight
5. water once daily for the duration of the experiment
6. measure the height of grass once a week and record
7. keep recording weekly for three weeks
*number of grass seeds can be changed, but keep approximately the same amount in each pot.
Controlled Variables: same soil, same pots, same kind of plant (grass)
Independent Variable: Kind of water: tap, ocean or rain
Dependent Variable: Amount of growth in inches
Experimental Control: grass in the lawn because it's growing naturally
Safety Requirements: pretty much none, use common sense.
Data:
Summary: The data was not as clear as I would like it to be, but there definitely is a little bit of a trend. The rain water and the tap water were about even while the ocean water was a little lower. The numbers that are displayed are measured from the tallest blade of grass. Since it was hard to measure every single blade of grass, I picked the tallest one each week and just measured that for progress–there was usually one growing a little bit more than the others.
Conclusion: My hypothesis was supported, but the results overall did not reach a definite answer. The ocean had the lowest amount of growth with only 1/4th of an inch from the date I started while the tap water had growth of about 5/8th's of an inch and the rain water ended at 3/4th's of an inch. It was clear from the data that ocean water didn't really support the germination of the seeds as many of them didn't even grow–however, my other data with tap and rain water were inconclusive because they were both very similar numbers. The plants did not grow well in the ocean water because it is too acidic and didn't possess the necessary nutrients for land plants like grass to survive. I could've improved the validity by extending the experiment for a few more weeks–by doing this I probably would have reached a more clear conclusion because the grass would have time to grow to its full height. I could have controlled the quality by measuring the amount of water I was giving to each pot, because in my experiment I just gave an amount that looked right, but it could have some affect on the end result. We can apply these results to the real world by continuing to use rain or tap water to give grass (lawns) the correct nutrients to grow.
Conclusion: My hypothesis was supported, but the results overall did not reach a definite answer. The ocean had the lowest amount of growth with only 1/4th of an inch from the date I started while the tap water had growth of about 5/8th's of an inch and the rain water ended at 3/4th's of an inch. It was clear from the data that ocean water didn't really support the germination of the seeds as many of them didn't even grow–however, my other data with tap and rain water were inconclusive because they were both very similar numbers. The plants did not grow well in the ocean water because it is too acidic and didn't possess the necessary nutrients for land plants like grass to survive. I could've improved the validity by extending the experiment for a few more weeks–by doing this I probably would have reached a more clear conclusion because the grass would have time to grow to its full height. I could have controlled the quality by measuring the amount of water I was giving to each pot, because in my experiment I just gave an amount that looked right, but it could have some affect on the end result. We can apply these results to the real world by continuing to use rain or tap water to give grass (lawns) the correct nutrients to grow.