AGRISCIENCE EXERCISE

University of Arkansas - AgriScience Project

AGRISCIENCE EXERCISE

PLANT SCIENCE & BIOTECHNOLOGY

Key Concept: Plant Maintenance & Coordination

Sub-Concept: Water Relationships: Translocation of Fluids

Agricultural Application: Water is vital to the survival of plants. Agricultural crops must be monitored closely to insure that the proper amounts of water are available for the most efficient growth.

Exercise: Observe Translocation of Fluids in Plant Tissues

Applied Principle(s): Translocation of fluids in plants

Goals:

Explain the term "translocation."
Discuss how a plant takes up water.

Materials:

narrow vase of water
fresh white flower
food coloring
rubber band
knife
cooking oil

References: Green, D.E., Woolley, D.G., and Mullen, R.E. (1981). Agronomy Principles and Practice. Edina, MN: Burgess International Group, Inc. Bellwether Press Division.

Trudeau, M. (1994). Plant Morphology & Taxonomy. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Instructional Materials Service.

Ardley, N. (1991). The Science Book of Things That Grow. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich

Teacher Preparation Notes:

This is designed as a class activity, to be set up primarily by the teacher or some other adult. You may include the students in preparing the experiment as you deem appropriate.
Any fresh white flower will work for the activity, including carnations, daisies, and others.

Procedures for Conducting the Activity:

1. Discuss with the class the importance of water for living things, emphasizing how plants use water. Explain that this experiment will show how much water one flower will take in.

2. Complete the following steps, allowing the students to participate as you see fit.

a. Add several drops of food coloring to the vase of water.

b. Carefully pour about one tablespoon of oil into the water. [The oil floats on top of the water, preventing the escape of any water through evaporation.]

c. Place the rubber band around the vase.

d. Cut the stem of the flower at a very sharp angle.

e. Place the flower into the vase. Move the rubber band to the top of the oil.

3. Leave the flower in a warm place for about two days.

Observe the difference between the rubber band and the new oil level. This is the amount of water which the flower has taken in.

4. Engage the class in a discussion of the purpose and process of translocation of fluids within a plant's tissues. Emphasize the agricultural applications of this concept.

TEACHER BACKGROUND SHEET

- Observe Translocation of Fluids in Plant Tissues -

Plants survive based on their ability to make their own food and transport fluids from one plant part to another. Translocation is the term used to describe the movement of organic and inorganic solutes among plant parts. Without translocation, plants would be unable to metabolize food for energy, growth, and maintenance.

Plant leaves are able to produce sugars when light and carbon dioxide are available in the atmosphere surrounding the plant. Amino acids are formed in the leaves and roots from sugars and nitrogen. Both amino acids and carbohydrates are translocated to other parts of the plant in its phloem tissue. In addition, water and minerals are absorbed by the plant roots, and translocated upward in the xylem tissue.

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