By Nick Myers

Problem Statement: Will milk make bean plants grow taller or shorter compared to plants grown with water?

Hypothesis: If the plants are watered with milk, then the height of the plants will be less than plants watered with water.

germinate – to develop into a plant from a seed

bud – early stages of plant development photosynthesis – the internal process by

which a plant turns light into energy Phaseolus vulgaris – scientific name for the

common bean plant ANOVA – (Analysis of Variance) statistical

test used to compare 3 or more groups

About 30 bean seeds Water Milk Container (approximately 40cm x 12cm x

6cm or that suits the experiment) Growing lights Fluorescent bulbs Potting soil Graduated cylinder Metric ruler Mixing instrument Separate container Table

Purchase materials. Set up lights and table. Divide the container creating 30

sections Plant seeds 3-6 cm deep. Water each plant daily with the right

liquid. Lights on 7AM; Lights off 7PM. Every two weeks measure the height of

the plants and record it in your logbook. Analyze data after 6 weeks

IV: Milk percentage by volume

DV: Height (mm)

CONSTANTS: distance of plants from light, amount of liquid given to plants daily, planting depth, type of milk, amount of space for growth, seed type, environment surrounding plants, temperature plants are grow in

Levels 0% 50% 100%

Trials 10 10 10

Trials Water ½ Water, ½ Milk

Milk

1 187mm 161mm 178mm

2 217mm 91mm 66mm

3 159mm 160mm 115mm

4 122mm 0mm 124mm

5 196mm 73mm 34mm

6 146mm 49mm 194mm

7 147mm 146mm 122mm

8 144mm 134mm 0mm

9 190mm 92mm 179mm

10 41mm 171mm 0mm

Average 154.9mm 107.7mm 92.6mm

Trials Water ½ Water, ½ Milk

Milk

1 214mm 144mm 181mm

2 262mm 69mm 68mm

3 168mm 158mm 128mm

4 148mm 0mm 135mm

5 259mm 66mm 20mm

6 169mm 77mm 215mm

7 164mm 177mm 144mm

8 171mm 148mm 0mm

9 246mm 119mm 177mm

10 64mm 193mm 0mm

Average 186.5mm 115.1mm 106.8mm

Trials Water ½ Water, ½ Milk

Milk

1 253mm 144mm 111mm

2 302mm 36mm 15mm

3 192mm 122mm 135mm

4 179mm 0mm 165mm

5 274mm 58mm 8mm

6 196mm 87mm 250mm

7 184mm 138mm 52mm

8 199mm 127mm 0mm

9 242mm 102mm 200mm

10 88mm 192mm 0mm

Average 210.8mm 99.6mm 93.6mm

Water ½ Water, ½ Milk

Milk

Week 0 0 0 0

Week 2 154.9 107.7 96.2

Week 4 186.5 115.1 106.8

Week 6 210.8 99.6 93.6

An ANOVA statistical analysis test was used to compare levels at week 6. Obtained a p value < .001. Therefore the results were significant.

Milk spoils – bad for the soil and bad for the plants

Plants need water – while milk is about 87% water but it spoils

Water doesn’t – doesn’t make the soil bad for the plant

Bad seeds; could have grown more then needed and taken healthy plants

Lights not same distance; could have had their own light source

Seed depth; could have used planting tools

Water is the best to grow plants with, and this experiment proved that water is better than milk

Milk should not be used

Could test other factors: lighting, seed depth, amount of water, etc.

Could try water vs. milk on a bacteria growth experiment