Water Cycle in a Baggie
Objectives
- (4) Knows the relationships of biotic & abiotic factors within ecosystems.
- (4C) Diagram abiotic cycles, including the hydrologic cycle.
- (4D) Make observations & compile data about fluctuations in abiotic cycles, & evaluate the effects of
abiotic factors.
Materials
1 gallon baggie
Potting soil
Spoon/shovel/cup
Seeds
Water
Ruler
Procedures
1. Put 2-3 inches of potting soil in bottom of baggie.
2. Moisten the soil.
3. Dig a small trench 1cm deep from 1 side of the bag to the other.
4. Sprinkle approximately 10-20 seeds in the trench.
5. Lightly cover the seeds with soil. Pat soil down.
6. Sprinkle water (or pour lightly) until soil is moist.
7. Write your team names on tape & place on bag.
8. Blow air into the baggie & seal it tight.
9. Place your baggie under the light.
Explanation
Now you've created an environment for your plants. You won't have to water your plants again because it will
just recycle itself. So the roots in the plant—they collect the water from the soil, and they take the water up
through the stem (root uptake). And once it's in the stem, it goes all through the plant. And once it gets to the
leaves, it will evaporate (transpiration). Some water evaporates from the soil, too (evaporation).
Once it's done evaporating, the water travels up through the bag...and it forms tiny little water droplets—if
you can see them here on the side. That's called "condensation." Then the condensation falls back down to
the ground, kind of like rain. That's called "precipitation." The water then seeps down through the soil in a
process known as percolation. So the water cycle is evaporation/transpiration, then condensation, and then
precipitation.
Now, put your biome in a sunny place for about three or four days. In that time period, you'll see your plants
start to grow. The great thing about a biome in a baggie is that it has everything that it needs in the baggie. It
has water, nutrients from the soil, air in the bag, and it makes its own food from the sun.
NAME: ______________________________________________________________ PERIOD: _________
WATER CYCLE IN A BAG – Cycles Matter
Each individual student needs to complete this lab report!
OBSERVATIONS
Date
Day #
Observations (must have both qualitative & quantitative each day)
For the following questions, please use your journal notes as well as Biology book pages 404-410.
1. What are biogeochemical cycles? _________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
2. How is the movement of matter through the biosphere different from the flow of energy?
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
3. Why is the cycling of elements important? ___________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
4. List three examples of matter that is recycled within & between ecosystems?
a. _______________________________
b. _______________________________
c. _______________________________
5. What is transpiration? __________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
6. Which other step in the water cycle is similar to transpiration. Defend your answer.
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
7. Explain or draw the water cycle using the main processes involved: condensation, evaporation,
precipitation, transpiration, run off, & percolation/seepage.
8. According to your data table, how did the plant in a sealed baggie illustrate the water cycle?
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
9. Where can water be stored on & around Earth? ______________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
10. What is the main energy source that fuels the various biogeochemical cycles? ______________
11. Describe where Earth’s large reservoirs (storage) of carbon are found. ____________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
12. Explain how carbon can be moved through its cycle. ___________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
13. Describe where the various forms of nitrogen can be found on Earth. ____________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
14. Define “nitrogen fixation” & give an example of this process. _____________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
15. Do you think agricultural runoff is good for the environment when it has high amounts of phosphorus
in it? Why or why not? _____________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
16. Choose 1 way that humans disrupt biogeochemical cycles and describe the consequences of the
disruption. _____________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________