Name:________________________Period:_________________Date:_____________
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Nitrogen fixation experiment
Hypothesis:
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Procedure:
1. At your station you will find a scale, a pair of scissors, paper towels, a
microscope and a bucket of water
2. Get your plants
3. Gently remove the pot from the roots and dip your plant in the bucket of water
4. Shake and massage the roots until there is little or no dirt left on the roots
5. Lay your plant on paper towels to dry – pat with paper towels to get as much
water off as you can
6. Cut plant at the point where the stem of the plant meets the shoots.
7. Weigh shoots and roots separately and record their weight in data sheet below.
Make sure to record what units you are using
8. Bring your data to the smartboard to record in
the class average
Leaves
Data sheet
cut
Roots
Plant 1: ___________________________
Weight of Leaves
Weight of Roots
Observations of leaf color:
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Plant 2: ___________________________
Weight of Leaves
Weight of Roots
Observations of leaf color: ________________________
Name:________________________Period:_________________Date:_____________
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Name:________________________Period:_________________Date:_____________
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Class averages:
Leaf
Length
Plants with Microbes
Plants without Microbes
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Average Leaf weight
Average Root weight
Working with your group, choose leaf length, leaf weigh or root weight and present the
results. This can be in the form of a bar graph, line graph or scientific illustration
(note: if you choose to do a drawing, it must be proportional and include extensive
labels)
Interpret the results of our study on nitrogen fixing microbes. Include answers to the
questions: What was the effect of microbes on plant growth? Did we find root nodules?
What do you think is the reason for differences (or no differences) between plants with
microbe fixing bacteria and those without?
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Name:________________________Period:_________________Date:_____________
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