Corn in the Dome by CDP

Introduction

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-23 16:36:37 UTC

A plant requires special treatment and care, like a certain amount of water, sunlight, nutrients, and being in an atmosphere in which carbon dioxide (CO2) and other compounds are found. Each of these factors varies depending on the type of plant to use, which, in this experiment, is corn. Corn, also known as Zea Mays, grows in a warm environment (temperatures between 20-30° C degrees), lowlands and mid-altitude, with constant sun exposure, 2,5-3 meters is the high range of a corn plant (Fundación BIODIVERSIDAD, 2018). This crop has a very high nutritional value, because of its large amounts of vitamins, carbohydrates, calcium, phosphorus and potassium. However, it isn't used just for food products, it is considered a basic raw material of the industry, according to elEconomista(n.d.).

Methology

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-23 16:37:01 UTC

Materials will be: 2 thin plastic drums, 6 small pots, leaf soil, soil strainer, germinated corn seeds. The bases of the drums were cut, resulting in one with a height of 8cm, and the second, 16cm. Perforations were added so as not to disturb the exchange of gasses in the test subjects. The tops of the canisters were saved for future adjustments. With all the materials ready, start planting the germinated corn seeds in each pot, taking care to not affect the seedling's root system. Two corn plants are going to be control plants with any change. Two corn plants will be covered by the 8cm water drum. The last two plants will be covered with the 16cm water drum. The drums must have holes for the CO2 to pass through. When having the plants planted and with the drums they should be placed in an area with 30m of direct sunlight at day and with a temperature between 15 to 25 degrees Celsius. Also, the plants should be given the same amount of water to each one. Each plant will be watered every day (40ml) and its height will be measured every day (cm).

Results: Table 1

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-23 17:28:24 UTC

Results: Graphic 2

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-23 17:34:51 UTC

Results: Graphic 1

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-23 17:35:24 UTC

Results: Table 2

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-23 17:36:12 UTC

Abstract

2022-09-28 12:44:27 UTC

In this work we developed an experiment with multiple corn plants subjected to different conditions. The variant chosen was space limitation. Six plants were used, of which three were control plants and the other three were subjected to the chosen variant. The results of our experiment showed that the plants with limited space (confinement) grew faster and healthier. With this we suggest that in the case of growing plants in a protected environment and with determined space, it is favorable for them to grow faster and safer from diseases.

References

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-28 13:51:03 UTC

Fundación BIODIVERSIDAD ALIMENTARIA (2018). MAÍZ. Retrieved 24 August 2022, from https://www.biodiversidadalimentaria.cl/?s=ma%C3%AD

Gill, V., 2012. Las plantas en macetas "no alcanzan su máximo potencial" - BBC News Mundo. [online] BBC News Mundo. Available at: <https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias/2012/07/120702_plantas_maceta_am > [Accessed 26 August 2022].

Mannise, R., 2019. Cómo cultivar en espacios reducidos y no morir en el intento - Ecocosas. [online] Ecocosas. Available at: <https://ecocosas.com/agroecologia/como-cultivar-en-espacios-reducidos-y-no-morir-en-el-intento/> [Accessed 26 August 2022].

Ramos, A. (2022). Opinión: El impacto del aumento de los costos en la industria agrícola – Simfruit. Retrieved 5 September 2022, from https://www.simfruit.cl/el-impacto-del-aumento-de-los-costos-en-la-industria-agricola/

Analysis

floriacak — 2022-09-28 20:54:37 UTC

From the results seen in the investigation it was observed that the 2 encapsulated plants had better growth than the control plant that was in the open air. It was assumed that this was because it was seen that the control plant had a fungus since it wasn’t protected with anything. On the other hand, plants 1 and 2, which were encapsulated, did not have any fungus or illness, and grew rapidly.

When plants 1 and 2 reached the point of contact with the edge, there was a deviation in growth, which did not affect the speed of growth. These plants grew to the side bordering the edge. While the control plants did not have much growth. These facts verify that the hypothesis is correct, which was that when the plant reaches the top, it will twist upside down.

It is deduced that the plant encapsulated in the 8 cm dome had a faster growth because when it encountered the dome, it detected it as a danger, and was forced to grow faster, to at least be able to reproduce. It is for this reason that the plant encapsulated in the 16 cm dome began to grow rapidly just after reaching the dome limit (this observation occurred outside the period of data collection).

This is important because, if it's known how much space a corn plant needs, it could grow on smaller crops with the same effectiveness than with the triple or even more space.

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-28 22:55:09 UTC

In 2012, a BBC author, Victoria Gill, released an article titled "Potted plants 'fail to reach their full potential". It took place in Germany, at the Julich Research Institute. It describes how scientists used magnetic resonance technology to see the roots of a beetroot (Beta vulgaris) in a pot. Hendrik Poorter points out: "When they reach the edge, the roots send some signal to the stems saying, 'there's a problem, stop growing". (Gill, V., 2012) On top of that, he also stated that "the most surprising thing is that there seems to be no limit to the growth" because, as soon as he moved the subjects to a pot twice as big as the previous one, they grew to twice their previous size”. The hypothesis of this research was inspired by this, measuring the behavior of leaves and stem, in order to see if these plants need a minimum of space to grow properly, this way gardeners can optimize the space by planting more in less space and to reduce bills in materials and elements/instruments for the care of plants, since prices are going up. According to Simfruit, “the rise in fertilizer prices, which even exceed 200% in some cases” (Ramos, A., 2022).

Nevertheless, the structure of the plant isn't the only one affected, its environmental factors as well. Considering what was said by Ecocosas(n.d.), keeping a plant inside a reduced pot impacts the soil, since the water dries out faster in a confined space.

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-28 22:55:30 UTC

Knowing this information, this research has the objective of learning if there are any differences between a plant that grows inside a dome with limited space and a plant with free space to grow in. By manipulating a growth variable (volume), it will be analyzed if the corn plant development is affected, whether it be helpful for the subject, letting know if it's possible to improve and/or speed up the production of this crop. The hypothesis is that, once the plant reaches the top of the dome, the subject will stop when it detects that something is wrong, because of the confined space. It will then look for a way to continue growing. Failing to find one, it will begin to twist inside the dome.

Conclusion

CDP_estudiante — 2022-09-28 22:58:21 UTC

One of the questions that arose with the experiment was if the capsule really protected the plant from diseases, since it was observed that only the control plant contracted a disease and the encapsulated plants did not, so we had doubts, but we believe that it did protect the plant.

We do not know at what space the plant is more effective. But among the plants observed, Enrique plant, that was in the most reduced space, had very good growth.

Thanks to this experiment, students were given the opportunity to learn about the different factors that affect the growth of a plant, both for better and for worse, and to be able to apply knowledge of chemical processes taught during this project, motivating those involved to continue the experimentation with doubts that arose from the results obtained.