Info
| Explore | We already know that germination is the process by which seeds grow and become plants. We also know that seeds need to be in certain conditions in order to germinate, and that germination varies from plant to plant. We don't know a lot about germination, but we are excited to learn more about it. |
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| Research Question | Do older seeds germinate slower than newer ones? We came up with this question when we were discussing how the germination rate changes over time, and we are now here to test it. This question will help us reinsure that newer seeds do in fact germinate faster than older seeds. |
| Predictions | Our prediction is that older seeds will take longer to germinate and possibly not germinate while the newer seeds will germinate a lot quicker and have a higher success rate than the older seeds. I think this will happen because we have learned in class that the germination rate usually decreases... |
| Experimental Design | Here is our plan: 1. Plant 10 new seeds and 10 old seeds. 2. Measure which day each seed arises from the ground. 3. Write down when each seed arises. 4. The experiment ends when all seeds have germinated. We will need to make sure the seeds are in these conditions: Each seed must be placed... |
| Conclusion | Our final claim is that the age of the seed does matter when it comes to germination rate as older seeds have a lower chance of germinating than newer ones (at least when it comes to pea seeds). We make this conclusion because in our experiment we tested the difference between old seeds and... |
| About this Project | The mentor and students had a great discussion about expected results! - Elizabeth Scott, Scientist Liaison |
Updates
Dear Dr. Rojas-Gutierrez and Ms. Scott, this is Jordan. I really appreciate you guys helping us with our project. I hope that we are able to do more projects and you guys can work with us again.
Thank you!
Thank you so much for helping us during this experiment! It was very cool getting to work with you and I am very thankful for all of the feedback you gave us. I think our group made a very interesting germination experiment together, and I hope you had a much fun as I did!
Here is our data analysis:
1. We planted our seeds and made sure that they were in the right conditions. (Listed in Experimental Design)
2. On day three we watered each seed with one inch of water.
3. On days four through six, 60% of the old seeds germinated and 90% of the new seeds germinated.
Conclusion
This means that old seeds do in fact take longer than new seeds to germinate.
Hi Jordan!
I can jump in here! Your experiment and data analysis sounds great! It sounds like you've supported your original hypothesis of older seeds not germinating as quickly or as frequently as newer seeds! How long are you planning on observing seed germination? And do you know how long you are going to observe your plants growing?
Your experiment reminds me of the Beal seed experiment (which is a really fun Google!). Over 140 years ago, a botanist named William James Beal had questions about how long seeds can stay alive before they germinate. To answer his question, he buried tons of jars of seeds underground and every 20ish years, he would dig them up and see if they would germinate. They are still digging up jars of seeds to this day (the most recent one was in 2021)!
Do you think that we should measure each seed by if it has grown at all even if it is still buried in the dirt, or should we wait until it grows above the dirt? We placed each seed one inch deep.
Hey Jordan ! It will depend in which type of measurements are you trying to do (Let me know what you have in mind). But if it is only yes or no germination, I will wait until you see that some of the green parts of the seedling are coming out of the dirt to marked as germinated. Just to make sure that in the process of removing the dirt to check you do not damage the seedling in the process.
Thank you for helping us figure this out, we were not sure what we should have done but now we know.
Hi i'm Katherine and me and Jordan's perdiction is that older seeds will take longer to germinate and possibly not germinate well the newer seeds will germinate alot quicker and have a higher sucsess rate that the older seeds.
Hi Katherine and Jordan. How is all going in the class ?
Respect your prediction it is what most likely could happen. Fresh seeds tend to have a quicker germination and have a greater rate of success. Several factors can influence germination rates (e.g ideal conditions) so even if the seeds are super fresh if they do not have the proper conditions most likely will not germinate.
Hello my name is Katherine I like vanilla ice cream. My question is,is there anyway to test if a seed can tell if there's a lot of seed's trying to germinate in an area and is there anyway they can decide that they don't want to germinate there and wait to be moved somewhere else. I'm wondering this because we have just started learning about germination and there is so much I don't know and want to learn.
Hi Katherine. That idea of yours of seeds sensing other seeds around them is amazing, however seems that so far there is not proves that support it . What seeds could do is sense a proper environment where they know they have the correct conditions to grow. If there are lots of seeds that germinate in a small space then a competition for resources will begin and just some plants will be able to completely develop.
Hello, my name is Aidan and my favorite color is blue. A question that I have about plants and germination is does dormancy affect the germination or growth of the plant? The basis for my question is the Wonder of Seeds Reading. I was really interested in how seeds could be dormant for thousands of years and still being able to germinate.
Hi Aidan, Hope you are finding the class amazing !!
Dormancy is a strategy the seeds has when they are not in the favorable conditions. If a seeds remains in dormancy for lots of time the germination rate will start to decrease. However as you saw in class they can remain in dormancy for thousands of years. Now for growth, once the seedling germinate the roots will play an essential role for finding more nutrients so the plants can keep growing.
Hello I'm Hugh. One initial question I have about germination is when is the average time of year for a Common Milkweed seed to start germinating? The reason for this is that my family raises Monarch butterflies during the summer and we need milkweed in the garden before June.
Hi Hugh. How is raising a Monarch butterfly? Have not have that experience myself.
In nature the common Milkweed germinates in spring after dormancy trough winter (that will assure that the plants germinate because of a process called stratification). If you want to start growing this plant, what you could do to increase the germination rate is put the seeds in the fridge (~ 32 F) in the dark for 5 days and then plant them. The average time for germination after that is 10 days.
Hello my name is Katherine I like vanilla ice cream. My question is,is there anyway to test if a seed can tell if there's a lot of seed's trying to germinate in an area and is there anyway they can decide that they don't want to germinate there and wait to be moved somewhere else. I'm wondering this because we have just started learning about germination and there is so much I don't know and want to learn.
Hi everyone!
My name is Elizabeth, and I am your liaison this session. I am a PhD student from Portland State University in Oregon, and I study wind-dispersal of plants (like dandelions).
You will mostly be talking to your mentor, but you may hear from me from time to time to make sure everything is going smoothly! I'm looking forward to hearing more about your experiment! :)