Volume 6, Spring 2008 - Saddleback College

More documents

Recommendations

Info

$Math 10 â Statistics - Saddleback College$

Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Phaseolus vulgaris Gregory Nelson and Elena Novak Department of Biological Science Saddleback College Mission Viejo, CA 92692 The majority of plants growing under natural conditions contain fungal tissue in their roots called mychorrizae. Mycorrhizal fungus establishes a symbiotic relationship with plants. Many plants directly benefit from this connection because the fungus enhances nutrient uptake within the plant’s roots and improves growth of the plant. Mycorrhizal fungus, in turn, receives sugars which it extracts directly from the roots of the plant. This study examined whether or not mycorrhizal content would affect bean plant growth and development. Two groups of 14 bush beans were planted on October 15, 2007. The experimental group was planted in the organic soil rich in mycorrhizal (Ecto Mycorrhizae Inoculant: 3,000,000 viable organisms per cubic foot and Endo Mycorrhizae Inoculant: 1,900 viable organisms per cubic foot). The control group was planted in organic potting soil. After 36 days of growth, plant heights were measured. Results showed that there was no significant difference between experimental and control group (unpaired t-Test: p=0.3058). The number of pea pods were counted from the experimental and control groups and the difference was significant. There was a greater amount of pea pods growing on control plants than on experimental plant (p=0.0340). These results did not support our initial hypothesis that bean plants grown with mycorrhizal compose will grow taller and would produce a greater amount of pea pods. Beans do not require mycorrhizea fungi for nitrogen fixation or mineral uptake which promotes growth and development. This may be the reason why our hypothesis was not proven. Introduction Plant growth and development is dependent on many factors, such as the nutrient abundance in soil, water availability, and light. A region of intense microbial activity exists in the soil surrounding plant roots. Soil-inhabiting organisms and more specialized parasitic organisms infect living roots and utilize them as a source of food. Plant tissue becomes disorganized in this process and the root system becomes infected (Gerdemann, 1968). Mychorrhizae obtain food from the host without destroying the functioning of root tissue, and a balanced relationship between host and microorganism is established. This type of symbiotic relationship can be regarded as the highest level of parasitic specialization (Daft, 1966). Plants that grow under natural conditions are symbiotic organisms which uptake water and nutrients through the root system and fungus tissue. These fungi like roots are called mycorrhizae. Relatively few plants are completely free from mycorrhizae. The root system of an individual plant 70 Saddleback Journal of Biology Spring 2008 can be completely mycorrhizal or only a little portion of it can be infected. Mycorrhizal fungi colonize plant roots and the purpose of the following experiment is to compare plant growth with mycorrhizal and without it. Mycorrhizae often enhance the host plant’s growth and mineral uptake, particularly for plants grown under low nutrient and mineral stress conditions (Clark, 1997). The initial hypothesis for this experiment is: soil concentrated with mycorrhizae will enhance the plant’s ability to take up all the nutrients from the soil and will result in much healthier, larger plants than the soil which is not going to be treated with mycorrhizae. Materials and Methods Two groups of Bush Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) seedlings were planted, in two separate planting trays, with organic potting soil in the green house of Saddleback College on October 15, 2007. Fourteen seeds for each group were planted in a planting tray with the recommended distance between rows of 3 to 4 inches and a seed depth and spacing of 1 inch. The experimental group was planted with
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Monrovia® Custom Soil Blend (Ecto Mycorrhizae Inoculant: 3,000,000 viable organisms per cubic foot and Endo Mycorrhizae Inoculant: 1,900 viable organisms per cubic foot). The control group was planted in E.B. Stone Organics Potting Soil®. All plants were watered three times a week as directed by instructions. Equal portions of water were given to each group regularly to insure that the soil was evenly moist, but not soggy. Plant measurements, from the two groups, were taken at the end of 36 days of growth. The heights of the plants were measured with a metric ruler and recorded in centimeters. The number of pea pods that were produced by each plant were counted and recorded as well. Results among the two groups were compared using an unpaired T-test. Differences were considered significant at P
Page 1 and 2:
Saddleback Journal of Biology Zebra
Page 3 and 4:
TABLE OF CONTENTS Biology 20 Honors
Page 5 and 6:
TABLE OF CONTENTS Biology 3A Abstra
Page 7 and 8:
TABLE OF CONTENTS Biology 3A Abstra
Page 9 and 10:
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts carb
Page 11 and 12:
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Food
Page 13 and 14:
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts bloo
Page 15 and 16:
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts unde
Page 17 and 18:
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Wong
Page 19 and 20: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts turn
Page 21 and 22: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Effe
Page 23 and 24: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts fish
Page 25 and 26: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts onto
Page 27 and 28: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Comp
Page 29 and 30: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts from
Page 31 and 32: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Ther
Page 33 and 34: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Envi
Page 35 and 36: 35 Saddleback Journal of Biology Sp
Page 41 and 42: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Figu
Page 43 and 44: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Mean
Page 45 and 46: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts spec
Page 47 and 48: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts VCO
Page 49 and 50: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts time
Page 51 and 52: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Ryan
Page 53 and 54: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts CO2
Page 55 and 56: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts zone
Page 57 and 58: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts meso
Page 59 and 60: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts The
Page 61 and 62: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Lite
Page 63 and 64: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Afte
Page 65 and 66: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts The
Page 67 and 68: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts THE
Page 69: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Disc
Page 73 and 74: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Exha
Page 75 and 76: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts to t
Page 77 and 78: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Maug
Page 79 and 80: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts moni
Page 81 and 82: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts stud
Page 83 and 84: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts 60 A
Page 85 and 86: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts insi
Page 87 and 88: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Depa
Page 89 and 90: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts not
Page 91 and 92: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Incr
Page 93 and 94: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Figu
Page 95 and 96: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts and
Page 97 and 98: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Tabl
Page 99 and 100: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts stor
Page 101 and 102: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts Pher
Page 103 and 104: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts 4. E
Page 105 and 106: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts 10.
Page 113 and 114: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts 1. E
Page 115 and 116: Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts 7. T
Page 121:
Fall 2007 Biology 3A Abstracts 25.
show all

Volume 6, Spring 2008 - Saddleback College

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?