Lab 2 - Experiment 1: Design an Experiment

The following experiment is meant to be designed by you with the beans provided in the kit.
You will design and execute an experiment to test several factors that influence seed
germination. Whatever your experimental design, be sure to include controls and make sure it
is reproducible.
Materials:

100 beans

10 5 x 8 in. bags

Permanent marker

Ruler

*Paper towels

*Water

*Masking tape
*You must provide

Notes about bean germination:

The time to germinate will decrease if you soak the beans overnight before beginning
the experiment.

It may take 7-10 days for the beans to "sprout".

Make sure the paper towels remain moist for the duration of your experiment.

Procedure
1. Think of 10-20 variables that may affect seed germination. Record them in Table 3.
2. From your list of variables in Table 3, select three to test. Form a hypothesis for why
each affects seed germination.
3. To germinate the beans, place one folded paper towel, moistened but not soaking wet,
into the 5 x 8 inch bag. Place 10 beans in a horizontal line on the paper towel.
4. Use a different prepared bag for each variable tested. Label each bag with the variable
being tested.
5. Hang each bag using masking tape in the environment you select.
6. Create a table for your data, including title, units, and any other useful information.
7. Select the appropriate type of graph, and report the data you collected.
8. Write a lab report for this experiment in the space provided.

Table 3: Variables That May Influence Seed Germination

Variable

Hypothesized Effect

Light Exposure

Not that important until seeds sprout from casing

Temperature

Causes plants to photosynthesis faster

Humidity

Too much water will drown seeds and not enough will prevent
growth
Lack if nutrition from no soil will effect growth

Nutrition
Oxygen
Time

If bag isnt opened regularly, no new oxygen can be provided for

respiration
You cant rush seed growth

Distance between seeds

Seeds too close to each other will result in survival of the fittest

Darkness

Light is an important factor for photosynthesis

Lack of Attention

Neglected Seeds Will not survive

Topography

The medium that the seeds are planted in, effects the amount of
water and nutrition it

Lab Report:
Introduction: There are many factors that can influence seed germination. Germination is the
process where a seed grows into a plant. Some of the factors that affect germination are as
follows: Light exposure, temperature, nutrition, time, distance between seeds, topography,
oxygen, and many others.
Experiment: The purpose of this experiment is to test three variables, and to hypothesize what
effect those three variables would have on the seed germination.
Materials:

100 beans

10 5 x 8 in. bags

Permanent marker

Ruler

Paper towels

Water

Masking tape

Hypothesis: I believe that the variables that I selected for this experiment have correct and
incorrect conditions that will increase the seeds chance of germination. For temperature, I
believe that germination will increase at room temperature verses a colder temperature. For
light, I believe that germination will increase with more light verses less light. For oxygen, I
believe that germination will increase with oxygen verses no oxygen.
Method: To germinate the beans, place one folded paper towel, moistened but not soaking
wet, into the 5 x 8 inch bag. Place 10 beans in a horizontal line on the paper towel. Use a
different prepared bag for each variable tested. Label each bag with the variable being tested.
Hang each bag using masking tape in the environment you select. For each variable tested,
use two samples (for example: Variable = Light. Hang one bag in a dark area and one in a light
area). Measure results.
For my selection I used temperature, light and oxygen. For temperature I hung one bag in the
garage where the temperature is generally about 50 degrees F. The second bag I hung in my
room, with the average temperature being 70 degrees F. For light I hand another bag in my
room that has both natural lighting (window) and lighting from lamps. The second bag I hung in
my closet. For the third variable, oxygen, I hung two bags in my room, one with the bag sealed
and the other open. The seeds were allowed to germinate for 7 days. The following were my
results.

Results:

Variable

Temperature
Oxygen
Light

Days till
Germination
Optimum conditions
5
6
4

Days till
Germination
Not Optimum
conditions
8
No Germination
No Germination

Conclusion: Of the variables that were tested, oxygen and lighting were significant when it
came to seed germination. Without exposure to one of these two variables the, the seeds were
unable to germinate within the time frame of the selected test.