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| Part A: Competition among Plants |
- 1. Fill five milk container bases with soil. Label the containers A through E.
- 2. Thoroughly moisten the soil in each container. Use the same amount of water to moisten the soil in each container.
- a) Why is it necessary to use the
same amount of water in each container?
- 3. Place seeds into the containers as follows:
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A. 5 crinkly cress (pepper grass) seeds
B. 10 crinkly cress seeds
C. 20 crinkly cress seeds
D. 30 crinkly cress seeds
E. 15 crinkly cress and 15 lettuce seeds.
- Spread seeds on the thoroughly moistened soil. (You are not expected to place them one at a time. Just spread them out as much as you can and as evenly as you can.)
- 4. Cover the seeds with a thin layer
of soil.
- 5. Place your containers in a low-light, room-temperature location (20°C is optimal). Keep the soil moist, but not soggy, by watering or misting every day or two.
- 6. When your plants sprout and begin to shed their hulls they are ready for light. Move them to a well-lighted location. If you go with sunlight be prepared to water more frequently. Room light will work as well and will not dry out the soil as quickly.
- a) Count and record the number of seeds that germinated.
- 7. Keep the soil moist but not soggy by watering regularly. Water from the side if possible to prevent injuring the tiny plants. Again, make sure that each container is given the same amount of water.
- 8. Measure the heights of the plants and note the number and size of the leaves every two days for about three weeks.
- a) Record your observations.
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b) In which container were the cress plants the tallest?
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