The Effect of Nitrogen on the Growth of Raphanus sativus in an Increased CO2 Environment
The purpose of this experiment was to determine if Nitrogen had an effect on the growth of Raphanus sativus plants being grown in an increased CO2 environment. Two different amounts of blood meal, a fertilizer with a high source of Nitrogen, were added to the samples of Raphanus sativus plants grown in an environmental chamber. The level of CO2 in the chamber was adjusted to 500 ppm of the atmosphere, the amount it is predicted to reach in 50 years. Also, the temperature inside the environmental chamber was set to 15 degrees Celsius. The growth of the plants was measured every two days using a ruler. A two sample t-test was performed on the data to determine whether or not Nitrogen had an effect. The resulting p-value was 0.0043, lower than the alpha value of .10 which determined that the plants did not grow at the same rate. Based on the data, it can be concluded that the Raphanus sativus with a low amount of Nitrogen grew higher than the Raphanus sativus with a high amount of Nitrogen. Both grew more than the controls. These results can help farmers and gardeners produce larger crops by using fertilizer with a higher Nitrogen content.
Research Conducted By:
Olivia Smith
Warren Mott High School
Katherine Sobodos
Sterling Heights High School
Warren Consolidated Schools