Praxis: Let’s get gardening

By Medicine Hat News on March 16, 2019.

I don’t know about the rest of you, but this turn in the weather has me anxious to get outside and start my gardening. Although it’s nice right now, we are bound to drop again in temperatures so it is best we do not start growing anything outside, just yet. Instead, I came up with this activity to help with the gardening bug, at least for now! Let’s get started!

*Remember to ask an adult before doing this experiment.

Materials

– bean seeds

– water

– scissors

– tape

– cardboard shoe box with a lid

– extra cardboard pieces

– small clay pot

– potting soil

– sunny location

Procedure

1. Inside of the shoebox, make a maze with the spare pieces of cardboard. Be creative, using your scissors, carefully cut the pieces into different shapes and sizes and secure them in place using a good brand of tape. You want it to be very secure, but also able to move freely through the maze.

2. On one end of the box, carefully cut a hole so you can see into the inside of the box.

3. In the small clay pot, add some soil and a couple of bean seeds. Cover with soil and water.

4. Place the plant in the far end of the shoebox maze. It has to be in the corner opposite the hole you cut in the shoebox.

5. Place the cover on the shoebox.

6. Find a nice warm sunny location to place the shoebox. Make sure that you place the shoebox just so the hole in the shoebox is getting the most sunlight.

7. Do not forget about your plant – check a couple of times a week and water as needed.

8. Regularly observe what happens as the plant grows.

9. Be patient, this may take a few weeks to finish.

What is going on?

Plants are absolutely amazing. As the seeds sprout and begin to grow inside of the dark shoebox, the plant begins to search for the sunlight. Plants have a powerful urge to seek out the sun. It is quite hard but it will begin to twist and turn around the maze you created in the shoebox. Eventually you will see the plant poking out of the hole you cut in the side of the box. It finally found the sunlight!! They do this because plants make their own food through a process called photosynthesis. To power the process, the plant uses the energy of sunlight. It truly is amazing how smart a plant is.

Patty Rooks is senior scientific consultant at PRAXIS, “Connecting Science To The Community.” Contact Praxis at praxis@praxismh.ca, http://www.praxismh.ca, Tweet or follow us @PraxisMedHat, or friend us on Facebook.

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