Transpiration Inspiration - Another Great Celery Experiment

IMPORTANT: Run and tell your mom you will need celery for this experiment.  Promise her that in return for (maybe) running to the store to buy the needed item, you will eat your vegetables, cheerfully, for a week.

What is the role of leaves in transpiration?25 points
Materials: 3 stalks of celery with leaves, glass or jar, red or blue food coloring,  petroleum jelly (Vaseline), knife, metric ruler.

Procedure:
1. Cut 1 cm off the bottom of three celery stalks. (Caution: use knife with care!)
2. Remove leaves from one stalk.  Apply petroleum jelly (Vaseline) on both sides of the leaves of another stalk.  Leave the third stalk alone; it is the control.
3. Place all three stalks in a container containing 5 cm of water and food coloring.
4. Place the beaker in a sunny location. Observe the celery periodically for 24-36 hours.  Record your observations, and perhaps take a photograph.

Analyze and Conclude:
1. Observations: In which stalk did the colored water rise the most?  The least?
2. Inferring: What effect did the petroleum jelly have on transpiration?  What part of the leaf did the petroleum jelly affect?
3. Drawing Conclusions:  How are leaves involved in transpiration?


If you did not complete your homework last week, do so now.  That means read Chapter 2, section 2 and carefully and artistically copy diagram 3 in colored pencils; that's right, the entire diagram on page 40.
 25 points

As an alternative, you may do Brainpop.com [ pcshome / ilearnathome ]  25 points
http://www.brainpop.com/science/cellularlifeandgenetics/photosynthesis/   ////watch movie, fill out vocabulary sheet (activity) and take quiz
http://www.brainpop.com/science/cellularlifeandgenetics/cellularrespiration/  ///same - movie, vocabulary and quiz.