| Experimental Design |
(1) Lay out 5 petri dishes in a naturally, not artificially, well lit area.
(2) Label the dishes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 on the edge of the bottom of each respective dish.
(3) Obtain five containers.
(4) In each container, pipet 5 ml of deionized water.
(5) In container 1, do not add any grams of sugar. In container 2, add 1 gram of white sugar. In container 3, add 2 grams of white sugar. In container 4, 3 grams of white sugar, and container 5, 4 grams of white sugar. Be sure to mix well.
(6) Pipet 1 ml of the respective liquid into each petri dish, following the 1-5 numeration. Make sure to carefully swirl each petri dish to ensure an even coverage of the petri dish’s surface.
(7) Place 4 rye seeds in each petri dish, spread out roughly equidistant in a square shape.
(8) Using clean tongs of tweezers, ensure that all sides of each seed are soaked in water.
(9) Place the petri dish lids on top of the dishes.
(10) Every day for 2 weeks, note the day when seeds in each petri dish first produce root tips, or germinate. Make note of which seeds never germinate or take longer to germinate.
(11) From then on, every day for the rest of the two week duration, measure the heights of each germinated seed in each petri dish, noting the time of measurement, and then let the petri dishes sit overnight. The more consistent that you are with when you measure, the better.
(12) Make special notes when the first cotyledons appear and when the first true leaves appear. Cotyledons are the smaller leaves that form and stay close to the stem of the plant.
(13) Every so often, add 0.5 ml of the respective water to each petri dish, careful not to disturb the placements of the seeds, and make note of the days that you do this. |