Tomato Plant Lab

Question: What caused tomato plant A to grow higher than tomato plant B and C?

A B

Objective: To determine what caused the tomato plant to grow higher than the others.

Let’s Brainstorm!What would make A grow higher?

Hypothesis: If more fertilizer is added to plant A, then it will grow higher than plant B and C.

A B

Materials: Tomato PlantsPotsSoilFertilizerWaterSunlight/LightMeter StickScientist

PenPaperCalendar (possibly)

List all of the items you will need to run this lab.

Variables

Independent Variable

Fertilizer

Dependent Variable

Height

Constant Variables

Type of plantsType of waterType of fertilizerMeter Stick

ScientistPaperPenType of Pots

Type of SoilCalendar (possibly)

Procedures1. Read all procedures.2. If a hypothesis is not given, write one.3. Gather all materials (supplies).4. Take the pots and add 10 cups of soil and place one plant in each pot. Record

the height of each plant.5. Add 1 cup of water to each plant. Repeat daily.6. Add 1 tablespoon of fertilizer to plant A, ½ a tablespoon to plant B and no

fertilizer to plant C. Repeat weekly.7. Place both plants in the same location making sure they get equal amounts of

sunlight.8. Record weekly (on the same day) the height of each plant. Repeat for a total

of 10 weeks.9. Repeat the entire experiment two more times.10. Clean up your work station.11. Write a conclusion.

ConclusionThe objective of the lab was to determine what caused the tomato

plant to grow higher than the others. The hypothesis stated If more fertilizer is added to plant A, then it will grow higher than plant B and

C. The hypothesis was supported because Plant A grew to 24 cm high, Plant B only grew to 19 cm and Plant C grew to 17 cm. It was learned that by adding fertilizer to plants it helps the plants grow better. Also

learned was how to use a meter stick and run a controlled experiment. Errors that could have been in the lab were all the plants were not the

exact same height in the experiment. Plants also may have gotten slightly less sunlight due to the angle of the sun. Ways to make the

experiment more valid would be to use a light lamp and make sure all plants are of equal height before beginning.