Choudhury - Lewandowski

Introduction
Americans eat 400 million pounds of radishes (Raphanus sativus) each year, most
of which is consumed in salads (RAD!" #R$A)% Radishes are fast &rowin& roots,
which &erminate, the process in which seeds or spores sprout and 'e&in to &row, within
three to se(en days (Radish)% #hey are filled with many 'eneficial (itamins and minerals
such as ri'ofla(in, (itamin )*, ma&nesium, copper, (itamin C, folate, and potassium
(Radishes, raw)% +ur purpose in this e,periment was to see if we could make radish seeds
&erminate faster with a certain com'ination of treatments% "elpin& radishes to &erminate
- and therefore &row - -uicker will 'e 'eneficial to a (ariety of people who use radishes
in many ways% .ust a few of the ways radishes are used are in medicine, industry,
cookin&, and health and fitness%
n this e,periment, we planted se(enty radish seeds and treated them with
different le(els of calcium and soil p"% #o decrease the soil p", we added soil acidifier,
and to increase the p", we used water% /e added different amounts of calcium to the
water the first time we watered the seeds% 0ach day, for the duration of the e,periment,
we counted how many seeds had &erminated%
As one of our factors, we wanted to see how the 'reakdown of water would affect
radish seed &ermination% /e decided to use calcium% Calcium is a mem'er of the
alkaline-earth metals these metals react acti(ely with water% #he calcium reacts with the
water, producin& hydro&en &as (Calcium 1 /ater)% !o, we mi,ed crushed calcium ta'lets
with the water prior to waterin& the plants%
Different seeds &erminate and &row at different le(els of p"% p" stands for
potential of hydro&en% #he scale of p" is from 0 to 24, where 3 is neutral, hi&her than 3 is
2
Choudhury - Lewandowski
more alkaline, and lower than 3 is more acidic (/hat is p")% Radish seeds &erminate at
the fastest rate 'etween the fairly acidic p" ran&e of 4%4 5 *%6 (Radish !eed
7ermination)% 8or the p", we used 4%4 as the low le(el, *%0 as the standard le(el, and *%4
as the hi&h le(el, 'ecause the (alues were the closest to the optimum &ermination ran&e
of radish seeds% n order to achie(e the desired soil p", we added distilled water to
increase the p", 'ecause it has a hi&her p" of 3% /ith the purpose of decreasin& the p"
of the soil, we used soil acidifier%
Problem Statement
9ro'lem !tatement:
#o determine the effect of the presence of calcium in water and soil p" on the
&ermination rate of Raphanus sativus (radish seeds)%
"ypothesis:
f the calcium added to the water is at its hi&h le(el, which is 600 m& and the p"
of the soil is at the standard le(el, which is *%0, then the &ermination rate of the radish
seeds will 'e the -uickest%
Data measured:
#he independent (aria'les in this e,periment were the calcium added to the water,
measured in milli&rams (m&), and the p" of the soil% #he dependent (aria'le was the
amount of days it took fro the radish seeds to &erminate% #he data analysis used was a
two-factor Desi&n of 0,periment (D+0)%
;
Choudhury - Lewandowski
Experimental Design
<aterials:
0co #ester p"; p" meter
9remier 9ro-<i, 9ottin& = !eedin& <i,
)urpee 7erman 7iant radish seeds (30)
2 L distilled water for each waterin&
9lantin& 9ots (30)
+ri&in Coated Calcium #a'lets (*00 m&, 300 m&, 600 m&)
<ortar and 9estle
0spona +r&anic #raditions !oil Acidifier (>?4 t'sp each pot)
60 ml )eaker
!tirrin& !tick
9rocedure:
2% La'el 24 pots with hi&h hi&h (1 1), 24 pots with low low (- -), 24 pots with hi&h
low (1 -), and 24 pots with low hi&h (- 1)% La'el the last ten pots with standard%
;% !et out all 30 pots (as shown in 8i&ure 2)%
>% 8ill the pots nearly to the top with the 9remier 9ro-<i, 9ottin& = !eedin&
<i,%
4% #est the soil with the p" meter%
4% /ork the soil so there are no clumps%
*% f the p" le(el is lower than the hi&h (alue, which is *%4, add a certain amount of
distilled water (dependin& on how low the p" is) to 24 pots to increase it to *%4%
3% f the p" le(el is hi&her than the hi&h (alue, which is *%4, add a @ t'sp of soil
acidifier (dependin& on how hi&h the p" is) to 24 pots to decrease it to *%4%
6% f the p" le(el is lower than the standard, which is *, add a certain amount of
distilled water (dependin& on how low the p" is) to 24 pots to increase it to *%
A% f the p" le(el is hi&her than the standard, which is *, add a @ t'sp of soil
acidifier (dependin& on how hi&h the p" is) to 24 pots to decrease it to *%
>
Choudhury - Lewandowski
20% f the p" le(el is lower than the low (alue, which is 4%4, add a certain amount of
distilled water (dependin& on how low the p" is) to 24 pots to increase it to 4%4%
22% f the p" le(el is hi&her than the low (alue, which is 4%4, add a @ t'sp of soil
acidifier (dependin& on how hi&h the p" is) to 24 pots to decrease it to 4%4%
2;% 9lace one radish seed a'out three fourths cm down into the soil in each pot%
2>% Crush a *00 m& calcium ta'let usin& the mortar and pestle%
24% Add the *00 m& crushed calcium ta'let to one liter of distilled water and mi, with
a stirrin& stick%
24% Add ** ml of the water?calcium mi, to each of 24 pots for the low (alue%
2*% Crush a 300 m& calcium ta'let usin& the mortar and pestle%
23% Add the 300 m& crushed calcium ta'let to one liter of distilled water and mi, with
a stirrin& stick%
26% Add ** ml of the water?calcium mi, to each of 24 pots for the standard (alue%
2A% Crush an 600 m& calcium ta'let usin& the mortar and pestle%
;0% Add the 600 m& crushed calcium ta'let to one liter of distilled water and mi, with
a stirrin& stick%
;2% Add ** ml of the water?calcium mi, to each of 24 pots for the hi&h (alue%
;;% Continue to water all plants as needed throu&hout the rest of the e,periment with
distilled water%
;>% +'ser(e how many seeds ha(e &erminated each day%
;4% Record o'ser(ations in a data ta'le, as shown in #a'le >, until all the seeds ha(e
&erminated%
4
Choudhury - Lewandowski
Data and Observations
Data:
#he data collected is on how lon& it takes for Raphanus sativus (radish seeds) to
&erminate under different le(els of calcium and p"% #he p" le(els in #a'le 2 were used
'ecause the optimum le(el of p" for &rowin& radishes is in that ran&e, 'etween 4%4 and
*%6 (Radish !eed 7ermination)% As shown in #a'le ;, the seeds treated with hi&h calcium
and hi&h p" &erminated on different days, a'out half of them &erminated on day 4B the
seeds treated with hi&h calcium and low p" mostly &erminated on day 4B the seeds
treated with low calcium and hi&h p" mostly &erminated on day 4B the seeds treated with
low calcium and low p" &erminated on different days, a'out half of them &erminated on
day 4B and the seeds treated with the standard amount of calcium and p" also &erminated
on different days, mostly day 4 and 4%
#a'le 2
Desi&n of 0,periment $alues
Calcium (m&) p"
- !tandard 1 - !tandard 1
*00 300 600 4%4 * *%4
#a'le ;
9lant 7ermination
D+0
7ermination (days)
(calcium, pH)
9lant Cum'er (1,1) (1,-) (-,1) (-,-) !tandard
2 4 4 4 4 D
; 4 4 4 4 4
> 4 4 4 4 4
4 4 4 * 4 4
4 4 4 4 4 4
* 6 4 4 4 4
3 4 * 4 4 3
6 4 4 4 4 4
A 4 4 4 4 4
4
Choudhury - Lewandowski
D+0
7ermination (days)
(calcium, p")
9lant Cum'er (1,1) (1,-) (-,1) (-,-) !tandard
20 * 4 4 4 4
22 6 4 4 3 C?A
2; 4 * 4 4 C?A
2> 4 D 4 4 C?A
24 4 * 4 4 C?A
24 4 4 4 4 C?A
D E Did not 7erminate
+'ser(ations and Acti(ities:
#hrou&h out the e,periment, there were many o'ser(ations% As shown in #a'le >,
the seeds started &erminatin& on <arch ;4
th
, which is day four of the e,periment% <ost of
the seeds treated with low calcium and hi&h p" &erminated on day four% <arch ;4
th
, day
fi(e, was when the hi&hest num'er of the seeds &erminated% Fnfortunately, two of the
seeds ne(er &erminated and those were standard G2 and hi&h calcium, low p" G2>% #he
seeds treated with low calcium and hi&h p" &erminated the fastest, so the 'est results
were recei(ed from those% #he seeds treated with hi&h calcium and hi&h p" &erminated
the slowest, so the worst results were recei(ed from those% All the seeds were cate&oriHed
'y what treatment they were &i(en%
!ome of the plants are shown in 8i&ure 2%
#a'le >
+'ser(ations and Acti(ities
Date +'ser(ation
24-<ar Arran&e and la'el pots%
24-<ar 9ut soil in pots nearly to the top%
2*-<ar 9ut soil in pots nearly to the top%
23-<ar <easure and adIust soil p" with a p" meter%
26-<ar <easure and adIust soil p" with a p" meter%
*
Choudhury - Lewandowski
;2-<ar 9lant all 30 seeds%
;;-<ar /ater plants with calcium%
;>-<ar +'ser(e plant &ermination% Co seeds &erminated yet%
;4-<ar
;6 seeds &erminatedB 4 ( 1 , 1 ), ; ( 1 , - ), 22 ( - , 1 ), * ( - , - ), and 4
standards%
;4-<ar
>2 seeds &erminatedB 3 ( 1 , 1 ), A ( 1 , - ), > ( - , 1 ), 6 ( - , - ), and 4
standards% /ater seeds with no calcium%
;*-<ar
4 seeds &erminatedB 2( 1 , 1 ), > ( 1 , - ), 2 ( - , 1 ), 0 ( - , - ), and 0
standards%
;3-<ar
; seeds &erminatedB 0 ( 1 , 1 ), 0 ( 1 , - ), 0 ( - , 1 ), 2 ( - , - ), and 2
standard%
;6-<ar
; seeds &erminated% ; ( 1 , 1 ), 0 ( 1 , - ), 0 ( - , 1 ), 0 ( - , - ), and 0
standards% /ater seeds with no calcium%
;A-<ar Co more new seeds &erminated%
>0-<ar !tandard G2 and ( 1 , - ) G2> didnJt &erminate%
>2-<ar Clean up testin& area%

8i&ure 2% 9icture of the 9lantin& 9ots
Data Analysis and Interpretation
Data Analysis:
#a'le 4
Desi&n of 0,periment $alues
Calcium (m&) p"
- !tandard 1 - !tandard 1
*00 300 600 4%4 * *%4
#a'le 4
3
Choudhury - Lewandowski
0ffect of Calcium
Calcium (m&) 7ermination (days)
-2 4%4A
2 4%06
Effect of Calcium
4.49
5.08
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.8
4.9
5.0
5.1
5.2
-1 1
Calcium
G
e
r
m
i
n
a
t
i
o
n

(
d
a
y
s
)
8i&ure ;% <ain 0ffect of Calcium on the 7ermination of Radish !eeds
#a'le *
0ffect of p"
p" 7ermination (days)
-2 4%66
2 4%*A
Effect of pH
4.69
4.88
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.8
4.9
5.0
5.1
5.2
-1 1
pH
G
e
r
m
i
n
a
t
i
o
n

(
d
a
y
s
)
8i&ure >% <ain 0ffect of p" in the 7ermination of Radish !eeds
#a'le 3
6
Choudhury - Lewandowski
nteraction 0ffects of Calcium and p"
p"
(-) (1)
Line
se&ment
solid
1
4%0> 4%2>
Line
se&ment
dotted
K
4%3> 4%;*
Interaction Effect
4.26
5.03
5.13
4.73
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.8
4.9
5.0
5.1
5.2
-1 1
pH
G
e
r
m
i
n
a
t
i
o
n

(
d
a
y
s
)
8i&ure 4% nteraction 0ffect of Calcium and p"
#a'le 6
Cine !tandard Runs
7ermination (days)
4 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 4
A
C
a
l
c
i
u
m
Choudhury - Lewandowski
Stanar!
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Trial Number
G
e
r
m
i
n
a
t
i
o
n

(
d
a
y
s
)
8i&ure 4% Cine !tandard Runs
nterpretation:
n 8i&ure ;, it appears that the calcium had a positi(e effect on the &ermination on
the radish seeds, 'ut it did not% !ince the dependent (aria'le was measured in days, the
hi&her the L (alues are, the lon&er time the seeds took to &erminate% #his means that as
the calcium increased, there was a ne&ati(e effect on the &ermination of the seeds% #he
effect was %46>, so it took %46> days lon&er for the seeds to &erminate as the amount of
calcium increased%
n 8i&ure >, it appears that the p" had a ne&ati(e effect on the &ermination on the
radish seeds, 'ut it did not% !ince the dependent (aria'le was measured in days, the lower
the L (alues are, the shorter time the seeds took to &erminate% #his means that as the p"
increased, there was a positi(e effect on the &ermination of the seeds% #he effect was
-%26>, so it took -%26> days lon&er for the seeds to &erminate as the amount of p"
increased% #his most likely occurred 'ecause the hi&her the p" was in this ran&e, the
closer it was to the optimum ran&e of p" for radish seed &ermination, which is 4%4 5 *%6%
20
Choudhury - Lewandowski
n 8i&ure 4, it appears that there was some sort of interaction 'etween calcium
and soil p" 'ecause the lines are not parallel% #he interaction effect of the (aria'les is %
;6>%
n 8i&ure 4, it appears that the e,periment was done mostly correctly 'ecause
most of the A standards seem to 'e ali&ned 'etween 4 and 4% #his means that the
parameters for the e,periment were chosen correctly 'ecause the standards remain fairly
constant% All of the standards of &ermination were four or fi(e days, apart from one that
&erminated in se(en days%
Conclusion
#he e,periment was done to show what treatments helped radish seeds &erminate
the fastest% #he ori&inal hypothesis was that the radish seeds would &row the -uickest in
standard p", which is *, and hi&h calcium, which is 600 m&% #he 'est p" (alue was
hypothesiHed to 'e * 'ecause it is closest to the middle of the optimum &ermination
ran&e, which is 4%4 to *%6% #he calcium (alue of 600 m& was chosen 'ecause it was
thou&ht that more calcium would aid more in the 'reakdown of water, which would in
turn lead to -uicker &ermination% n fact, it did not lead to -uicker &ermination, and the
calcium had a ne&ati(e effect%
#he hypothesis was reIected 'ecause the radish seeds &erminated fastest in low
calcium, which was *00 m&, and hi&h p", which was *%4% #he soil p" was altered at the
'e&innin&, usin& different treatments and a p" meter to measure it% Calcium ta'lets were
added to the water of the first waterin& of the seeds% #he results showed that a low
amount of calcium is actually more 'eneficial to &erminatin& seeds, and the p" that
should 'e used when &rowin& radish seeds is around *%4% #his is 'ecause radishes appear
22
Choudhury - Lewandowski
to &row 'est at the top of the ran&e 'etween 4%4 and *%6% #he calcium le(el mi&ht ha(e
'een a little too hi&h and that is why it did not 'enefit the &ermination of the radish seeds%
!ome desi&n flaws that mi&ht ha(e occurred were &ettin& the e,act measure of p"
as desired% t is not (ery easy &ettin& the p" e,actly at the le(el desired% !ome days, the
p" mi&ht ha(e 'een at little 'it off the e,act le(el% tMs hard to keep the p" of the soil at a
steady num'er%
8indin& a way for radishes to &erminate faster, and therefore &row faster, could
possi'ly help to make the production of radishes increase and 'enefit many people
throu&h that% A lesson learned durin& the process of &erminatin& these seeds is that plants
re-uire a lot of research to &row -uickly and correctly and that all plants &row under
different conditions and that needs to 'e taken under consideration when &rowin& all
types of plants%
2;
Choudhury - Lewandowski
Bibliography
)oudreau,, Ne(in A% ODemonstrations - Calcium 1 /ater%O Angelo State University% 2;
<ay ;020% /e'% ;4 <ay ;022% Phttp:??www%an&elo%edu?faculty?k'oudrea?
demos?calciumK";+?calciumK";+%htmQ%
0(erhart, 0ldon% O"ow to Chan&e Lour !oilJs p"%O Iowa State University Horticulture
and Home Pest News% * April 2AA4: 4;-4>% /e'% 2 <ar ;022%
Phttp:??www%ipm%iastate%edu?ipm?hortnews?2AA4?4-*-2AA4?ph%htmlQ%
"udson, .% L% O"ow to 7erminate !eed%O J ! Hudson" Seedsman% 2 8e'% ;022% /e'% 22
<ar% ;022% Phttp:??www%Ilhudsonseeds%net?7ermination%htmQ%
.ira&e, Reshma% O!teps of !eed 7ermination%O #u$$le %e& Portal' Intelligent !i(e on the
%e&% )uHHle%com, nc%, 22 <ar% ;022% /e'% 22 <ar% ;022%
Phttp:??www%'uHHle%com?articles?steps-of-seed-&ermination%htmlQ%
Nim'all, .ohn /% O7ermination of !eeds%O )im&all*s #iology Pages% 4 8e'% ;022% /e'%
22 <ar% ;022%
Phttp:??users%rcn%com?Ikim'all%ma%ultranet?)iolo&y9a&es?7?7ermination%htmlQ%
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Nonin&, Ross% O!eed 7ermination%O Home Page (or Ross )oning% 22 <ar% ;022% /e'% 22
<ar% ;022% Phttp:??plantphys%info?seed&?seed%htmlQ%
Cuno, .udith !% O0ffects of p" on 7ermination of Radish !eeds%O +denunocom% C%p%,
;004?;00*% /e'% 2 <ar ;022%
Phttp:??www%Idenuno%com?)iolo&y?RadishLa'%pdfQ%
2>
Choudhury - Lewandowski
O Radish !eed 7ermination%O ,utorvistacom n% pa&% /e'% 2 <ar ;022%
Phttp:??www%tutor(ista%com?'iolo&y?radish-seed-&erminationQ%
O!eed 7ermination Data'ase%O #ackyard -ardener" .our -ardening Source with
-ardening ,ips% Dream"ost /e' "ostin&, 22 <ar% ;022% /e'% 22 <ar% ;022%
Phttp:??www%'ackyard&ardener%com?tm%htmlQ%
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