How pH affects Mung Beans By: Ji Yoon, Daniel, and Sade B1 Biology

The Mung Bean The mung bean is the one of the most familiar bean yet least known Looks like a garden pea Has been grown in India since ancient times Grown in U.S as early as 1835 and known as the Chickasaw pea Now it is mainly grown in Oklahoma in the U.S

Experiment Our project is on how different levels of pH could affect the growth and germination of plants particularly the Mung bean The pH scale measures how acidic or basic a substance is could be Ranges from 0-14, < 7 is acidic, > 7 is basic, 7 is neutral Three different groups Normal (pure water) = pH 7 Acidic (vinegar) = pH 3 Alkaline (baking soda) = pH 9

Hypothesis We believe that each group will have different outcomes in growth. The normal group will grow like any other plant; it will germinate and grow normally. The acidic group that has vinegar added to the water will grow much slower than the other groups and/or eventually die. The basic group (alkaline) will not grow at all.

Process 1. Add half a cup of soil into three labeled cups (1 labeled normal, another alkaline, and last acidic) of three equivalent groups. 2. Add 4 seeds into each cup, evenly distributed. Add a more soil to cover the seed. 3. Prepare the specified water. Get 150 ml of normal water, 150 ml of water plus .2 grams of baking soda, and another beaker with 150 ml of water with 1.5 ml of vinegar. Let the waters dissolve. 4. After 5-10 minutes after preparing the water, water each cup with the designated water, about 25 ml each. 5. Put the seeds in a well sun-lit area. 6. Come back every 2 days to measure how many sprouted and the heights of the tallest plant. Then water them again (steps 3-5).

Results Every pot had the growth of at least one seed in all of the groups, making our hypothesis invalid. Our hypothesis stated that the acidic and alkaline group wouldn’t grow or grow but eventually die. The outcome of the experiment was the opposite than what we expected. The alkaline and acidic group germinated, grew, and showed signs that it was going to survive by growing day by day.

Pictures of our Experiment The seeds soaking Second day of planting. (normal group) The tray of our plants. The acidic group on the left, alkaline group on the top right, and normal group on the bottom right. (March 19) A sprouting seed. (alkaline group) Daniel making one of our solutions