See the Rainbow

Question: Will the seeds change colors if the water has blue dye in it?

Introduction

Fast Plants (brassica) are members of the crucifer family of plants, closely related to cabbage, turnips, broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables. They were bred for over 30 years at the University of Wisconsin. The entire life cycle for Fast Plants® is extremely short, and under ideal growing conditions of continuous light, water, and nutrition, plants will produce harvestable seeds approximately 40 days after planting. (Wisconsin Fast Plants® Program) Brassica is dependent on continuous cool light. If it does not have continuous light it will fail to grow at all. Cool does not mean temperature, but the color of the light. Brassica needs light that is strong in the blue (cold) wavelengths of light, rather than the red (warm) wavelengths. Brassica grows best when it is kept moist and well fertilized. The Brassica Rapa seeds were developed at the University of Wisconsin and are widely used in education at many levels. (University of California)

Follow the fast plants procedure steps 1-5. Then make a different water solution and put blue food coloring in it. Put one of the quads on the control water group. Then the other on the experimental. Label each quad's boxes A, B, C, D. Lastly watch for changes in the plants as they grow. The prediction is the color of the seeds will change. It will change the seeds, not effect the growth of the plant.

Procedure

1. Follow the fast plants procedure steps 1-5

2. Make a different water solution and put 1mL of blue food coloring in the water

3. Put 1 quad on the control group water (natural water), and the other quad on the food coloring water solution

4. Label each quad's boxes A, B, C, D.

5. Watch for changes in plants as they grow

Tap water

Date total height total flowers total pods

10/24/2006 9.7 cm 0 0

10/30/2006 26.2 cm 19

11/6/2006 54.3 cm 24 24

11/13/2006 74.2 cm 16

11/21/2006 75 cm 13

Blue dye

Date Total height total flowers total pods

10/24/2006 9.5