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My science experiment is about plants adjusting to their environment to reach light.I have one plant in each of my three boxes. In each box there is a cut out hole and the hole is in a different area, in which the plant must adapt. My first question is:

1. I have planted my sweet peas but it takes them around 10 days to sprout. When do I record in my data table?

2. How should I record its growth when it hasn't even sprouted ?

3. Once it sprouts, should I record its growth as day 1?

Then, should I record every 2 day or 3 days?
Thank you very, much for your help !

Question Date: 2012-12-18

Answer 1:

Congratulations on getting your sweet peas planted. That is a good Day 1, because different peas might sprout on different days after planting. You can start measuring growth after the seeds start to appear above the dirt. Now you can write down the details of how you have done the experiment so far: How many seeds did you plant in each box? How big is each box? How high is the dirt in each box? About how far under the surface of the dirt are the seeds? What kind of dirt are you using? Where did you get it? How much water did you put on the seeds in each box? Write down when, and how much water you put on the seeds in each box, every time you water them.

When the seeds sprout, you can start measuring them. Measure their height and maybe how wide they are at their widest and narrowest parts. Write down how many leaves they have and anything else interesting about them. You can take pictures of them, too, sometimes. You can measure them every 2 or 3 days after they start to sprout, depending on how fast they are growing.

Best wishes,

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