Germination Lab Introduction, Lab Report Example

Aim:

To determine the effect of water salinity on the Broad bean’s and Mung bean’s ability to germinate.

Research Question:

How do varying levels of salt concentration in water (0%,0.0625%,0.125%,0.25%, 0.5%) within the germination environment of the Broad bean and Mung bean affect the rate of germination within a period of 7 days?

Background Information:

When considering the germination potential of any plant, it is necessary to consider the environment that they typically grow in. Factors that influence plant growth include exposure to sunlight, amount of water, and type and quantity of nutrients in the soil. It is essential to consider the amount of water necessary and nutrients in the soil because knowledge of these factors can direct farming practice for many plants. Furthermore the salinity of the soil or water may impact the osmotic process that allows the plant to retrieve its needed water supply. Therefore, this project will determine the salinity that is most appropriate for the Broad bean and Mung bean, although similar studies could be conducted on many different legumes or other plants.

To determine whether high or low levels of salinity are best for the growth of a plant, it is essential to use various amounts of salt without selecting levels that will certainly interfere with plant growth. To avoid exposing the beans to detrimental osmotic pressure, the salt concentration will not exceed 0.5%. In addition, a salt concentration of 0.0% will be included as well, because it is necessary to understand how the plants grow without any salt exposure as a point of comparison. In order to determine what the ideal salt environment is for the two plants, the water will be treated with a small percentage of salt (0.0625%) and subsequent plants will be exposed to serially doubled volumes until a volume of 0.5% is reached.

Legumes are typically protected from their external environment by their seed coat, which allows the inner compartment of the seed to resist extreme temperatures and potentially harmful chemicals. However, the amount of the protection that this component can offer varies. Because both the Broad bean and the Mung bean have a seed coat, it is expected that they will be able to grow despite exposure to small amounts of salinity. This is an evolutionary necessary need because plants rarely grow in environments that are completely devoid of salt. Since salt is expected to place osmotic pressure on the plant, plants that can avoid this pressure during germination will have a selective advantage. Since the Broad bean and Mung bean are typically not grown in aquatic environments with high salinity, it is likely that they prefer to grow in environments with low levels of salinity in both the water and soil.

Hypothesis:

It is expected that increased levels of salinity will provide no benefit to the Broad beans and Mung beans although they will still be able to grow until high levels of salinity are achieved. It is likely that they will stop growing once the salinity of the water reaches 0.25%.