Plant Growth with Acid Rain

Zoey Kamikawa

December 3, 2018

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Table of contents:

Table of contents: Page 2

Abstract : Page 3

Background Research: Page 4-5

Scientific Method: Page 6-8

Data and Graphs: Page 9-13

Conclusion: Page 14

Work Cited: Page 15

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Abstract:

Plants will always be a part of everyday lives because they help us breathe, they

provide us food, and so much more. This project was chosen because everyone waters

their plants with normal water but what if someone used acidic water. If acidic water

helped plants grow taller, then they could help produce more air as they matured. The

hypothesis is that plants that were watered with the acidic water would be adversely

affected compared to the plants watered with normal water. Plants watered with the

regular water would be taller than the plants watered with the acidic water. For this

experiment, you have to fill four pots with soil, with five sunflower seeds in each pot.

Then label your pots and place them under your grow lights. After, the watering liquids

will be prepared and the plants will be watered everyday with the same amount of liquid.

Heights will be logged everyday and videos and pictures are encouraged to see the

growth. In the data, it was shown that the plants watered with the regular water was

taller than the plants watered with acidic water. With this data, it concludes that the

hypothesis was correct and supported.

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Background Research:

Plant Growth with Acidic Water

When people have plants or gardens they usually water their plants with water

from the tap or the hose, but what if people watered their plants with acidic water. Most

people know that we use water to water our plants because it gives them all the

nutrients they need to grow and germinate, however can acidic water help plants grow

taller?

Acid rain is different from normal rain because it has a higher level of pH than

normal rain water. pH is the level of acidity found in liquids or objects. The pH scale

consists of numbers ranging from 0, which is the most acidic, to 14, which is the least

acidic. Normal rain has levels of acidity varying from 5 to 5.5, which can kill small

animals like frog eggs and crayfish. However when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide

mix together in the atmosphere, it creates acid rain which creates a pH level of 4, which

means most fish die at this acidity level. Normal rain has acidity level of 5 and acid rain

has the acidity level of 4 which means that the acidity has grown 10 times greater.

Acid rain is made when rotting veggies and erupting volcanoes spread a

chemical into the air that can potentially cause acid rain. It can also be made by burning

fossil fuels in coal-burning power plants. Although acid rain won’t kill you when you

walk or swim in it ,but too much exposure to it can cause long term lung problems and it

damages the ecosystem by killing a big portion of sea life by contaminating the water.

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Since, most people can’t obtain acid rain, for this experiment the alternative is acidic

water made with distilled water and bottled lemon juice.

When people water plants they use water because it gives the plants the

nutrients they need, but it turns out that lemon juice can give plants three of the six

essential nutrients that plants need to germinate and grow. The six essential nutrients

are nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, sulfur, and calcium. Lemon juice

gives plants potassium, magnesium, and calcium. Potassium helps to regulate the

respiration of plants and it aids photosynthesis process. Calcium helps the root

development and is a key role in the development of cell walls in the plant. Finally,

magnesium helps photosynthesis since it is the central atom in one of the plant’s

molecules that it needs to grow and survive.

When people have gardens or plants and they see a seed sprouting that is called

germination. Most flowering plants, such as sunflowers, absorb big amounts of water

during germination. In order for the plant to germinate, water has to activate the

chemicals inside the seed. The water activates seed’s embryo and changes the stored

food in the seed into energy for the plant to grow and thrive throughout the plant’s life.

Water also makes the embryo inside the seed to enlarge and eventually break open its

outer shell and begin to sprout. When this begins the plants starts to grow down into the

soil to grow its first root. Eventually when the plants starts to sprout and grow leaves the

plants gain the nutrients and food they need for survival from the soil and leaves.

In conclusion, even though lemon juice may seem like it could kill plants, but it

could potentially help the plant grow better and taller.

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Scientific Method:

Question:

Does acid rain affect the height of plants?

Hypothesis:

If plants receive acid rain then, it’s growth will be adversely affected. Acid rain plants will

not be as healthy as plants that don’t get acid

Independent Variable:

Different watering liquids

Dependent Variable:

Plant growth

Measurements (unit,color,temperature,etc.):

Centimeters with a ruler

Materials:

● 4 plants pots

● 1 bag of Miracle-Gro potting soil

● 1 package of Pikes Peak sunflower seeds

● 1 bottle of lemon juice

● 4 grow lights

● Distilled water

● Sharpie

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Procedure:

1. Fill 4 plant pots with potting soil and plant 5 sunflower seeds in each pot.(5 seeds

are the 5 trials)

2. With your Sharpie mark each pot as the following

a. Control

b. 5 mL of lemon juice

c. 15 mL of lemon juice

d. 25 mL of lemon juice

3. Place all pots under the grow lights - Grow lights will be used to ensure

consistency in levels of “sunlight”

4. 2 liters of water will be prepared. Lemon juice will be used to make the water

acidic.

5. 500 mL of water will go in each bottle and you will add half of the amount of

lemon juice as labeled on the pot. (Levels of acidity are 2.5, 5, and 12.5) If you

use 1 liter of water then you can use the numbers as labeled on the

pots.(5,10,and 15)

6. Watering will be done at the same time each day and a consistent measured

amount of water each day will be used each time. (Amount of water is 15 mL at

6:30 at night)

7. Plant heights will be measured everyday and logged

8. Pictures or video will be taken everyday of the plants

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9. At the end of the 14 day trial, growth height measurements will be compared and

averaged to either support or refute the hypothesis

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Data and Graphs:

Acid Concentration - 0

Table 1 - Growth of Plants Watered with 0 mL of Lemon Juice

Avg Avg Avg
Plants Plants Plants
that Day 12
Day Plant 1 Plant 2 Plant 3 Plant 4 Plant 5 Avg Lived Day 12 w/o 4
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0 0.00
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0 0.00
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0 0.00
4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0 0.00
5 0 6 6.5 0 7 3.9 2.17 3.9 4.88
6 7 13 13.5 4.5 11 9.8 8.33 9.8 11.13
7 12 16.5 17 7 15.5 13.6 12.00 13.6 15.25
8 17.5 18 20 8 16.5 16 15.17 16 18.00
9 20 19 22 8 17.5 17.3 16.67 17.3 19.63
10 21.5 20 23 8 18.5 18.2 17.50 18.2 20.75
11 24 20 24.5 8 19 19.1 18.83 19.1 21.88
12 24 20 25 8 19 19.2 19.00 19.2 22.00
13 24.5 broken 25 8 broken 11.5 19.17
14 24.5 broken 25.5 8 broken 11.6 19.33

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Acid Concentration
5ml per liter
Table 2 - Growth of
Plants Watered with
5 mL of Lemon
Juice
Avg Avg Avg
Plants Plants Plants
that Day 12
Day Plant 1 Plant 2 Plant 3 Plant 4 Plant 5 Avg Lived Day 12 w/o 2
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00
4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00 0.00
5 0 0 2 0 0.5 0.5 0.63 0.63 0.83
6 0 0 10 9 8.5 5.5 6.88 6.88 9.17
7 0 1 14 13 13 8.2 10.25 10.25 13.33
8 0 3 17 18 17 11 13.75 13.75 17.33
9 0 3.5 19 18 19 11.9 14.88 14.88 18.67
10 0 4 20.5 19 20.5 12.8 16.00 16.00 20.00
11 0 4 20.5 21 22 13.5 16.88 16.88 21.17
12 0 4 21 21 22.5 13.7 17.13 17.13 21.50
13 0 4 21 21 24 14 17.50
14 0 4 21.5 21 24.5 14.2 17.75

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Acid Concentration 15ml per liter
Table 3 - Growth of Plants Watered with 15 mL of Lemon Juice
Avg Avg
Plants Plants
Day Plant 1 Plant 2 Plant 3 Plant 4 Plant 5 Avg that Lived Day 12
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0
4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0
5 0 2.5 4.5 3 0 2 3.50 2.5
6 0 10 12 10.5 10 8.5 11.00 10.625
7 0 15 15 13.5 16.5 12 15.00 15
8 0 18 17 15 19 13.8 17.50 17.25
9 0 19 18 17 22 15.2 18.50 19
10 0 20 19 17.5 22.5 15.8 19.50 19.75
11 0 22 20 18 23 16.6 21.00 20.75
12 0 22 20 19 23 16.8 21.00 21
13 0 22.5 20 broke broke 8.5 21.25
14 0 23 20 broke broke 8.6 21.50

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Acid Concentration
25 mL per liter
Table 4 - Growth of Plants Watered with 25 mL of Lemon Juice
Avg Avg
Plants Plants
Day Plant 1 Plant 2 Plant 3 Plant 4 Plant 5 Avg that Lived Day 12
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00
4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0.00
5 1 0 0 0 0 0.2 0.33 0.25
6 11.5 5 0 0 3.5 4 5.50 5.00
7 15 8 7 0 9.5 7.9 10.00 9.88
8 18 11 14 0 15.5 11.7 14.33 14.63
9 18.5 14 17 0 18 13.5 16.50 16.88
10 19.5 14 17.5 0 20 14.2 17.00 17.75
11 20 16.5 19 0 21 15.3 18.50 19.13
12 21 17 19.5 0 21 15.7 19.17 19.63
13 21.5 17 19.5 0 broke 11.6 19.33
14 22 17 20.5 0 broke 11.9 19.83

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Day Control 5ml 15ml 25ml
1 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
2 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
3 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
4 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
5 4.88 0.83 2.50 0.25
6 11.13 9.17 10.63 5.00
7 15.25 13.33 15.00 9.88
8 18.00 17.33 17.25 14.63
9 19.63 18.67 19.00 16.88
10 20.75 20.00 19.75 17.75
11 21.88 21.17 20.75 19.13
12 22.00 21.50 21.00 19.63

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Conclusion:

Plants watered with acidic water might grow taller than plants watered with

regular distilled water. In the experiment, the data showed that the plants watered with

the 5 mL, 10, and 15 mL of lemon juice didn’t grow as tall as the other plants watered

with regular distilled water. The hypothesis was supported in this experiment. Plants in

the control pot had no lemon juice in its watering liquid so it grew taller than the rest of

the plants. Since in this experiment, the soil was Miracle-Gro, this soil is already

balanced out with all the nutrients that plants need to grow. However, the lemon juice

might have thrown off the balance from the soil and the plants might not have grown as

tall. Something unexpected that happened was that towards the end of the experiment ,

the plants started to break when measuring was being done. Because of this, the

measurement had to be estimated and labeled as “broken” for that day’s data. For this

experiment, some problems could have been fixed such as buying a different type of

plant that grows quickly but aren’t as fragile and they won’t break if they are to be

measured. Someone also might try and place the plants under real sunlight and not

grow lamps as done in this experiment. This project showed that regular water helps

plants grow better than plants watered with acidic water and other scientists could test

this with maybe different plants and see how the liquids affect the other plants. There

may be some plants that can flourish with a certain amount of acidic water,\ but more

tests will be needed to prove this theory.

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 Works Cited

Chertow, Marian. "Acid rain."​ World Book Student,​ World Book, 2018,

[Link]

Essential Nutrients, 2007, [Link]/mauisoil/c_nutrients.aspx.

Fredericks, Carrie. ​Water​. Green Haven, 2006.

Keating, Richard C. "Germination."​ World Book Student,​ World Book, 2018,

[Link]

“Lemon.” ​Today's Science,​ Infobase Learning, [Link]

Schwartzkopf , Carl. “Potassium, Calcium,MagnesiumHow They Relate to

PlantGrowth.” ​USGA Green Section​, 1972,

[Link]/[Link]?file=/1970s/1972/[Link].

Wardowski, Wilfred F. "Lemon."​ World Book Student,​ World Book, 2018,

[Link]

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