Problem

If you compare plant growth when hydrated with orange juice, tap water, and bottled water, then I predict that the one with bottled water will grow faster because orange juice is very acidic. I also think the bottled water will help the grass grow faster because it has less chemicals then tap water.

9- Great Value 16 ounce cups 108 ounces of Scott’s Potting Soil 4.5 ounces of Scott’s Annual Grass Seed 14 teaspoons of Tropicana Orange Juice (36 degrees F) 14 teaspoons of Acadia Bottled Water (68 degrees F) 14 teaspoons of Tap Water from the Town of Hurlock (55 degrees F) 3 small (3 tsp.) medicine cups One black Sharpie Marker Great Value Plastic Wrap (enough to cover each of the 9 cups) Ruler with millimeters

 On the first day, I got 9 –Great Value 16 ounce cups. I labeled each cup with the Sharpie Marker (Tap 1, Tap 2, Tap 3, Bottled 1, Bottled 2, Bottled 3, OJ 1, OJ 2 and OJ 3).  I poured in 12 ounces of potting soil into each cup. Then, I dug a small finger sized hole about 1 inch down in the soil and poured in ½ teaspoon of grass seed into each cup. I filled the hole back with some of the potting soil in the cup to cover the seeds.  I hydrated each of the cups of seeds. The ones labeled “Tap Water” were given 1 teaspoon of tap water, the ones labeled “Bottled Water” were given one teaspoon of bottled water, and the ones labeled “OJ” were given 1 teaspoon of orange juice.

 Then I covered the cups with plastic wrap and placed them in my kitchen window, where the sun shines in.  Each morning at approximately 7:00 a.m., I hydrated the seeds with 1 teaspoon of their specific liquid (tap water, bottled water, and orange juice.)  Once the seeds sprouted (day 5), I measured the height of the tallest piece of grass (in millimeters with a ruler) in the cup each night. I removed the plastic wrap once the plants sprouted.  I took pictures of the plants each day after they sprouted.

Day of Lab Tap Water 1 Tap Water 2 Tap Water 3 Bottled Water 1 Bottled Water 2 Bottled Water 3 Orange Juice 1 Orange Juice 2 Orange Juice 3 Weather Conditions 1No change No change No change No change No change No change No change Sunny 2No change No change No change No change No change No change No change Sunny 3No change No change No change No change No change No change No change Sunny 4No change No change No change No change Had a white film over the soil (mold). Cloudy 55 mm tall11 mm tall 4 mm tall2 mm11 mm8 mmYellow and white film over the soil (mold). Had a white film over the soil (mold). Rainy 625 mm36 mm28 mm25 mm31 mm23 mmYellow moldy residue thickens. White moldy residue thickens. Rainy 745 mm54 mm50 mm55 mm47 mm52 mmMoldy, but few one sprout 6 mm Moldy, but few sprouts 8 mm Moldy, but few sprouts 15 mm Partly Cloudy/ Sunny 879 mm61 mm70 mm80 mm68 mm62 mmMoldy/11 mm only few sprouts Moldy/13 mm only few sprouts Moldy/ 19 mm only few sprouts Partly Sunny 985 mm71 mm95 mm101 mm74 mm65 mm20 mm Moldy Few sprouts 20 mm Moldy Few Sprouts 26 mm Moldy Few Sprouts Cloudy/ Rainy 1091 mm90 mm106 mm111 mm96 mm88 mm24 mm few sprouts 27 mm few sprouts 31 mm few sprouts Cloudy/ Rainy

While working on this project, I gave each of the plants the proper care they needed and they each had different results. I predicted that the orange juice wouldn’t work at all because of the acids in it, but it turns out that the sugar in orange juice clogs up the pores that absorb water. However, I discovered that the seeds hydrated with the orange juice did have few sprouts, but they were not as full, tall, or healthy as the seeds hydrated with water. In the end my prediction was correct because I hypothesized that the bottled water seeds would grow the tallest. Actually, I found that bottled water grew the most, but tap water wasn’t far behind in growth. The tap water and bottled water measurements were consistently close each day only being a few millimeters apart. Some days the tap water plants even exceeded the bottled water plants, but in the end the tallest plant on day ten was the bottled water plant. In conclusion, seeds hydrated with water grew healthier then seeds hydrated with orange juice.

 No changes occurred with the seeds from days 1-3 Orange Juice Tap Water Bottled Water