Science Project on “Energy to Germinate”, Project Experiment Topics on Energy in Different Forms for Class 8, 9, 10 and 12 Students.

Energy to Germinate

Materials Required:

1. Three different types of seeds
2. Potting soil
3. A closet or a basement
4. Three small containers
5. Masking tape
6. Pencil and paper

A seed is a storehouse of energy, which is used by a plant to feed itself. When a seed is planted, it grows roots and leaves, with the help of which it makes its own food. The root of the seed digs into the soil and sends water and other nutrients to the leaf, where sunlight is collected and food is prepared. This process of the plant making its own food with the help of sunlight is known as Photosynthesis.

Other components that are needed by the plant to make its food are Carbon Dioxide, Chlorophyll and some small amounts of minerals. The process of the seed growing its roots and leaves is known as Germination.

For the experiment, collect three different packages of seeds and also some potting soil to grow those seeds. You can now prove that the seeds contain enough energy to germinate, but in that stage, the plant needs sunlight and the other constituents in order to survive.

Take three small containers, where you are going to grow your seeds. Place small strips of masking tapes on their sides, so that you can write the names of the seeds, that you are going to place in those particular containers. Fill them with the potting soil that you have obtained and then dig in the particular seeds in their named containers, at a depth of around five inches.

Now place the containers in a dark place, preferably a closet or a basement, but make sure that the place is as warm as the room temperature all the time. Keep watering the seeds everyday, so that they remain moist. Do not get the soil very heavily soaked.

Keep recording your daily observations. As you see the leaves appear, you will realize that the energy contained in the seeds has come to an end and therefore if the plants are not taken out into the sunlight anymore, they will start dying, because they will not be able to make their food anymore.

Seeds and Their Structure

Every Seed Is The Result Of The Fertilization Process And Contains the embryo of a plant. Since plants are immobile and cannot move around, they derive their nutrients from the soil. Plant roots take in water and mineral salts from the soil. As the plant develops flowers, fertilization takes place and seeds are developed. New plants develop and grow from seeds once the seeds get the right environment to germinate (read more on this in the following pages).

The embryo inside the seed is protected by the testa which is a tough outer coat around the seed. There is a tiny hole, called the microscopy inside the testa. The root of the embryo is called the radicle and the plumule is the small shoot which grows out of the earth. The embryo has its own store of food which helps it in the initial stages of germination.

The insides of the seed can be divided into one or two parts which are known as the Cotyledons. Plants are classified on the basis of the number of Cotyledons in their seeds. Seeds which have a single Cotyledon produce Monocotyledons plants like grasses, palms and lilies. While seeds containing two Cotyledons produce Dicotyledon plants like and shrubs and broad leaf trees.