TITLE: Growth Due to Plant Hormones

AUTHOR: Wendy Clement

SCHOOL: Norwood Senior High School

SCHOOL ADDRESS: Nichols Street, Norwood, MA. 02062

The purpose of this project was to find a statistical value of growth plant hormones cause on lima bean plants. More specifically, I will calculate the effects of three hormones: Gibberellic acid, B-Nine, and Indole 3-Acetic acid. The objective is to find an increase or decrease in the growth of the height of the plant, the width of the leaf, and the length of the leaf.

The plants were grown in my basement that has an unusually warm temperature. I provided light through a fluorescent light fixture. Light was distributed for approximately twelve hours a day, and they were watered daily as well. I grew the plants in four window boxes, where each contained six to eight plants. Each window box was designated to a certain chemical. Each window box would be treated by their specified chemical, except for one group that was left untouched to serve as the control group. I did not use any sort of fertilizer or minerals because I did not want to add any more variables that might affect the outcomes of my experiment. I applied the appropriate hormone to the plants after they had formed their first leaves. This was about three to five days into the growing period. The chemicals were in paste form and applied only once. Throughout the growth period I took daily measurements and I made daily calculations. I would record the height, the leaf length, and the leaf width. I would also calculate the day-to-day change in growth. The growth period was sixteen days because after that there was little to no change in any of the plants. With the data I collected I created many graphs to pictorially display my results. I also went on to conduct a statistical analysis of the data within my samples.