Botany

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Satmary
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 5:04 am

Botany

Post by Satmary »

Hi,
I have an idea that I would like to know more about. My idea is to grow seeds using growth hormones, giberellic acid, auxins, and cytokinins. I know what each does to a plant but I do not know proper usage of the three hormones (how much to use on the plants). I understand each plant responds differently to the extra nutrients and minerals and I will probably use a tree seed of some sort.

So anyway my project would be to grow about 25-30 seeds with either a combination of the hormones or seperately(most likely a combination) and then to grow 25-30 seeds without any hormones. If you can help me out at all it would be much appreciated. Thank you for your time.
James
Former Expert
Posts: 52
Joined: Sat Sep 10, 2005 5:19 pm

Post by James »

Hi,

You have an interesting project idea. It seems as if you are examining many variables for your experiment. Is there a specific reaction or expectation from using all of these growth hormones? Or, are you just looking for an additive effect from using combinations of these growth factors? In other words, are you expecting a unifying result or a common result from these growth factors? My understanding of these hormones/growth factors is that they are not just growth boosters; rather, they also have critical roles in plant development and life. Your initial setup for the experiment seems sound as you are careful to show the relative results of with and without growth factors. However, you may want to think about what exactly you are expecting to happen and perhaps suggest how concentration or dosage of these growth factors may play a role especially in the combination scenarios.

James
Satmary
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 5:04 am

Post by Satmary »

Honestly I am just looking to see if the seedling will become more mature faster and if it will germinate faster. I want to see if the combination of hormones will have a greater impact on the grwoth of the seeds than if the seeds were grown in normal conditions.

Also how often are the hormones applied after germination. I need to get materials soon and would like tro know the proper amount to get at least until the end of the project. approx. 4-5 months
donnahardy2
Former Expert
Posts: 2671
Joined: Mon Nov 14, 2005 12:45 pm

Defining your project

Post by donnahardy2 »

Hi,

You have a good start on defining your project because you have a topic, but before you get started, you need to decide what your purpose is. What is the problem you are trying to solve? Or, what question you are trying to answer? Just applying a mixture of plant hormones to seedlings will not make a particularly good project unless there is a reason for doing the experiment. You do have the advantage of time here, so please take some time and do more background research.

For example, if you want to find out if plant hormones will shorten the time for germination, you need to find out everything that is important in germination.

http://www.seedbiology.de/germination.asp

Next you need to learn all about plant hormones. Here's a website that includes information on how hormones affect germination

http://www.seedbiology.de/hormones.asp

With this information, you should be able to pick one type of seed or seedling and one hormone, and design a meaningful experiment. Here's a website that describes a general all-purpose experiment that can be used to study any factor that affect plant growth.

http://tiee.ecoed.net/vol/v1/experiment ... lants.html

I know it's difficult to limit yourself with such an interesting topic, but you will find that the best project will be a very well designed, controlled experiment that answers a specific question.
I hope these suggestions will help you narrow your topic selection. Please write back and let us know if you have any other questions.

Donna Hardy
Satmary
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 5:04 am

Post by Satmary »

What I was hoping to do was to make a seedling that was all around more mature. The auxins would promote root growth allowing the seed to grow larger. The cytokinins stimulate the germination of seeds and control organ differentiation in plants. The giberellic acid would also promote germination and regulate the protein synthesis and stem elongation of the plant. I understand that these are a lot of variables but I would not know which one to eliminate or choose above the rest.

Please help me out.

Thanks
kathleenkimball4
Former Expert
Posts: 8
Joined: Mon Nov 05, 2007 8:52 pm

Post by kathleenkimball4 »

Maybe it would be better to research each hormone a little more and decide which one would be the strongest hand in the plant's growth. Weed out the hormones that have more focus on other parts of the plant and instead focus on the ones that are more involved in its actual growth. That could help!

I must say, your project is very interesting! Kudos to you. :) Let us know if you need anymore help!
-Kathleen-
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