Researcher: Jonathan Ko

Partners: Emma Bellman, Will Buckley, Johnathan Zhang

The Effect of an Abiotic Factor on Seed Germination Lab Report

Introduction:
Before the experiment the biggest factors of the germination was unknown. After reading off of some
websites the fact that mung beans have to be rinsed in cold water also the fact that mung beans
germinate in a warm place but where there isnt sunlight helps germinating was very surprising.

Problem Question:
What is the effect of different types of water on the amount of seed germination?

Hypothesis:
If one used sugary water, the rate of germination will be increased, but if the water is saltier the rate of
the germination will be decreased.

Prediction:
I think the one with the tap water will germinate faster and the one with the sugar will germinate pretty
well but the one with the salt wont germinate well.

Experimental Design:

Independent Variable: Type of Water Units: ml
Levels Sugar, Salt, Tap Water
Control Group: Experimental Groups:
Tap Water Salt Water Sugar Water

Dependent Variable: Number of Seed Germination Units: amount


Controlled Variables How it will be controlled
Sunlight Will be placed at the same place
Same Soil Given the same type of soil
Same amount of soil Every cup will have 47g of soil
Amount of water Every cup will be given 30ml of water
How many times watered Every cup will be watered once a day for three days

Materials:
30 Mung Seeds
420 mL of water
6g of salt
6g of sugar
141g of soil
6 plastic cups
Coffee Straw (something to mix)
Graduated Cylinder

Experimental Procedure:
1. Obtain 30 seeds and separate them into 3 piles of 10
2. Add 47g of soil into 3 plastic cups each.
3. Add 10 Mung seeds to the soil (Make sure the seeds are visible)
4. Pour 35 mL of water into 3 plastic cups
5. In the 3 remaining cups, add 35 mL of water into each cup
6. In the first cup, add 1.5g of salt and 1.5g of sugar into the second. Then mix the water until the
salt/sugar dissolves
7. The third cup will be the control group; so dont add anything into the water
8. Pour the cups of water into separate cups of soil and label them
9. Everyday, come back to pour more salt/sugar/tap water into the corresponding cups. After 4 days,
the test will be over

Qualitative Data:


Type of Water\Day Day 1 Day 2 Day 3
Tap Water 0 3 8
Salt Water 0 0 1
Sugar Water 0 2 4

Quantitative Data:
I saw that the beans would sprout little tails and then the things will grow. After the roots grew the
bean literally disappeared and I also saw that the water was a big factor on the germination because the
graph shows that the salt water only germinated one bean.

Conclusion:
My hypothesis and prediction was that sugary water will germinate more seed than the salty water but
the tap water will germinate the most. Based on the data the sugary water did germinate more seeds
than the salty water but the tap water still germinated the most seeds.

Discussion:
Water is not only an essential part of plant growth but plant germination. If the seeds arent given any
water the seed cant germinate at all. But not only is the water essential but the type of water is also
very essential. As seen on the graph the tap water showed immediate effect of germination so did the
sugar water but the salt water showed no effect.

0
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8
Tap Water Salt Water Sugar Water
Day 1 0 0 0
Day 2 3 0 2
Day 3 8 1 4
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G
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The Effect of Different Types of Water on Seed Germination
My biggest mistake on this experiment is the fact that I added too little salt and sugar to the water. 15g
of sugar and salt was way too little and I think that I shouldve given more of it. Also I think three day
was way too short of a time and wish we had a longer period of time to test it out. A better way to
change this experiment was to have more cups of seeds and add different amounts of salt and sugar to
it. Also having more than three day wouldve been better.

Citation:
Germination of a Mung Bean. (n.d.). GardenGuides. Retrieved September 17, 2014, from
http://www.gardenguides.com/136371-germination-mung-bean.html