The Effect of Abiotic Factors to Plant Growth

Introduction
Light energy (sunlight) is the primary source of energy in nearly all
ecosystems. Light energy is the energy that is used by green plants (on land)
and phytoplankton (marine environment) during the process of
photosynthesis. It is of the greatest importance to plants because it is
necessary for photosynthesis.
Plants manufacture its own food such as sugar, starch, and other
carbohydrates. Plants use energy from the sun to convert carbon dioxide and nutrients from
the soil into complex organic compounds, which form new plant material. These food
sources are also used by various living organisms which makes most life on
earth possible. Terrestrial plants and marine plants shape an environment
and as well as providing oxygen for all the living things on Earth.
Objectives
1. To observe the effect of light on plant growth.
2. To observe the effect of the type of soil on plant growth.
3. To describe how sunlight and soil type affects the ability of plants to
create food through photosynthesis.
Dependent Variable: Plant Growth (Height, Number of leaves per seedling)
Independent Variable: Location (Shaded and directly lit area) and Soil Type
(sandy loam and loam)
Controlled: Amount of soil placed in the pot and amount of water given to
all samples
Materials
1. 4 pieces of 6 inch pots
2. 40 Seeds of Mung Bean (Vigna radiata)
3. 4 Petridish
4. 2 types of soil (sandy loam, loam)
5. Water Mister/Sprayer
6. A dark area or shaded area in the garden
7. An open area in the garden (with direct heat of the sun)
8. Paper towels
Procedure
1. Germinate the Mung Seeds by placing them onto damp paper towels in a
petridish (10 pieces per petridish) and mist/spray them with a tap water.
Place the samples in the laboratory room or any area which is indirectly lit
and make sure that the samples will remain moist. A "hook" should appear

after two to three days, which indicates that the seeds are ready to be
planted in the pots.
2. Prepare two pots by placing paper towels as a lining for each pot. Fill with
sandy loam sand up to 2 1/2 inches from the top.
3. Prepare another two pots by placing paper towels as a lining for each pot.
Fill with loam sand up to 2 1/2 inches from the top.
4. Place the 10 germinated seeds for each pot carefully. Cover with 1/4 to 1/2
inches of the designated soil for pot.
5. Sprinkle water over the top of the soil until the soil is well saturated.
6. Place the two pots (with sandy loam and loam sand) in a dark area or
shaded area in the garden.
9. Place the remaining two pots (with sandy loam and loam sand) in an open
area in the garden (with direct heat of the sun)
10. Wait for one week to ten days.
12. At the end of one week or ten days, remove the pot from the designated
dark area and compare it with the pot of seedlings that were grown in the
light.
13. Remove one seedling from each 4 pots and compare the leaf and root
structure of the dark grown seedlings and the light grown seedlings.
14. Measure the height and count the number leaves of the seedlings from
sandy loam and loam sand taken from shaded area and open area of the
garden (with direct heat of the sun).