| Explore | Plants need soil, water, and light to survive. However, we know that there are a variety of different plants which grow in different types of environments. Meaning that they may vary in the amount of water they receive, the type of soil they are in, the optimal temperature around them, or even the amount of light they receive. These factors play an important role in a plants growth and photosynthesis. |
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| Research Question | How do different types of dirt affect plant growth? |
| Predictions | Given our variables we have and the soils we used, I predict that the Fox Farm soil will end up resulting in the best data and plant length for our plants. I also predict that sand will result in the worst results for our overall experiment. I think the Fox Farm soil will work the best because Fox Farm has beneficial microbes and will allow for the roots to expand through the soil and will be able to break down organic material better leading for the plant to be able to receive more nutrients. I then also sand will work the worst because with the type of seed we worked, a compound and soil replacement like sand will not work effectively like an actual soil compound. |
| Experimental Design | Our plan is to use different types of dirt and see the effects it has on plant growth. We'll be using 2 pots for every dirt we use which are Potting Mix, Fox Farm, and Sand. We'll be filling the pots and planting seeds and wait for germination. Everyday we will check the plant growth and see the changes for every pot we have. Also water every pot every other day but not too much. Then at the end we will see the results of growth and measure the mass of the stems for every pot. |
| Conclusion | In conclusion we can state that Fox Farm is the best type of dirt that plants can grow in. With our other types of dir, soil was the worst of the 3 types we did an experiment on. In studies it has shown that sand has no nutrients when water gets poured causing plants to be light in weight and have little effect on growth. Potting Mix wasn't the worse either because it wasn't that much behind Fox Farm. As a group we had a feeling that Fox Farm was going to dominant Potting Mix and Sand. Fox Farm has multiple nutrients and uses water towards their advantage. Future experiments that can be done to expand on the results is changing the temp. of where the plants grow and see how it effects the growth but also the mass at the end. |
| Investigation Theme | WOS |
| Grade Level | High School Students (Grades 9,10,11,12) |
| Teacher Name | Nichole Schelling |
| School Name | Medford High School |
| Session | Spring 2021 |