Info
| Explore | From our experiences outside of school, we know that most plants die in the winter and bloom again in the spring and that most tree's leaves change color in the fall, before falling off. From background knowledge and discoveries in class, we know that plants make their own food through... |
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| Research Question | Do you need the entire seed to grow a strong, healthy plant? We came up with this question because sometimes animals will eat part of a seed or a piece of a seed will break off. This question fits what we know about plants because we believe that plants can still grow as long as part of the... |
| Predictions | We think that the plants will grow, as long as the part of the plant that allows it to grow is still intact with the seed. We think this because sometimes the seeds of a plant are not always whole, but can still grow. |
| Experimental Design | Our plan is to test whether or not you need the whole seed for the plant to grow by cutting the seeds into halves, seeds without the outer shell, and full seeds, and planting them, giving them the same amount of water, soil, and sunlight. Once they have grown, we will measure them by length and... |
| Conclusion | Our hypothesis was partly correct. The seeds that contained the entire embryo did indeed grow. The half seeds didn't grow because the entire embryo was not intact. The seeds might not have grown because we didn't poke holes in the cup for water to drain out so they may have drowned. We think that... |
| About this Project |
This team stood out for having an experiment that was different than many of the others. They decided to test to see if a seed embryo needed to be intact in order to grow. They also did an excellent job of communicating with their mentor and documenting plant growth and changes in their... |
Updates
Hi Cheery Cherry Blossoms!
I've been looking over the files you posted and I think the graphs and journals I've seen are really great. I have a question about your conclusion, though. The last sentence is that the whole embryo needs to be present in order for the plant to grow, but the graphs show that there was some growth in all of them. Do you think it's accurate to say that a plant won't grow without the whole embryo? Is that what your data shows?
It's OK to say that they grew but didn't grow well. It's also OK to say that you were wrong in your hypothesis - that's what science is all about!! Regardless of your hypothesis, it's more important to make accurate statements about your experiment than to be "right."
I really enjoyed this project. I've been mentoring with Planting Science for many years and although I see a lot of the same experiments year after year, this is the first time I've seen this one. I think it was a really creative idea and very interesting to find out what would happen! Great work, Cherrry Blossoms!
I agree with Kate! If a plant needed the entire embryo, your half seeds wouldn't have grown at all. Also, your middle group - the one where you removed the seed coat - also grew and those had the entire embryo, too. So even though you saw less growth with the seeds you cut in half, you did still see some growth. It would be interesting to see if you did this again if you kept track of the halves to see if both halves of the same seed sprouted or just one. Also, take photos of the cut seeds before you plant them so you know which part of the seed grew.
Hi Cheery Cherry Blossoms,
I just read your revised conclusion and I think it's great! You pointed out what parts of your hypotheses were correct, and where you may have made errors. This is perfect for the next scientists who want to replicate your work - they'll know exactly what to watch out for!
I hope you've enjoyed working on this experiment and that it's given you some new insights into how scientists do these kinds of experiments.
Science on!!
Kate
Hi Kate,
We are working on fixing our conclusion now. We also uploaded the final version of our journals and graphs. We all wanted to thank you for all of your help and feedback during this project.
Thank you, Cheery Cherry Blossoms
Hi Team,
Here's your to do list:
Make sure you have answered all your mentor's questions.
Clean up your old files - delete older journals. Update only the latest journal version that includes your conclusion on what the data and observations collected means. Rename it so the journal includes your first name only (TimsJournal.jpg) and upload to the file section.
Graphs: Make sure each of you has uploaded your graph. Use the same file naming format so I know whose graph is whose. (TimsGraph). You should also post a png or jpeg of the graph in the Updates with your explanation of how the data supports or does not support your prediction. This will let your mentor know what you are thinking and they may have some suggestions or questions before you post the final draft of your group's conclusion in the Info section. Your group will need to agree and support the conclusion with evidence and your reasoning.
Post your final conclusion and thank your mentor! Now you are ready to make your poster so you can present your findings to the class!
Hi Kate
We decided that our hypothesis was partly correct. It was not a greatly detailed hypothesis. The seeds that had the entire inside intact did grow but the ones without the whole inside (half seeds) didn't grow. We also are about to post our conclusion so tell us if it needs any work.
Thanks so much,
Cheery Cherry Blossoms
Hey Kate,
We just wanted to let you know that we will be uploading our conclusion shortly. We also wanted to thank you for being our mentor for this experiment! We had so much fun working on this project and certainly could not have done it without your help!Thank you so, so much Kate!
-Hannah
Dear Kate,
Thank you so much for all of your help on our project. Thank you for helping us fix all of the problems we had and helping us find a solution.
Sincerely,
Julie
Hey Kate
Thank you so so so so much for a fantastic mentor. Thanks for all of your suggestions and for helping us out.
Lucy