1. PHISIOLOGY
(SBF 3013)
SEMESTER 2 2011/2012
MINI PROJECT : SEED GERMINATION
DATE OF SUBMISSION : 18th May 2012
LECTURER’S NAME : DR NORJAN BINTI YUSOF
GROUP : A
GROUP MEMBERS :
MARLISA BINTI SAU D20101037418
NUR HAYATI BINTI YUSOFF D20101037439
NORFARRAHDILAH BINTI AMIR D20101037438
SITI SALWA BINTI ABDULLAH D20101037439

2. Title :
Seed germination
Background of study :
Seeds wait to germinate until three needs are met that are water, correct temperature, and
a good location such as in soil. During its early stages of growth, the seedling relies upon the
food supplies stored with it in the seed until it is large enough for its own leaves to begin making
food through photosynthesis. For that, we will come up with their own variables to test the
hypothesis that made and then conduct the experiment. We will also examine the numerous
abiotic and biotic factors that affect seed germination and plant survival. Generally, problems
with soil, water, or fertilizer often limit plant growth. It takes several weeks to germinate seeds
and grow seedlings. Every other day, we need to spend a few minutes checking their seeds for
germination and recording data. So, we start the observation and research to find out what types
of nutrients that plants really need to promote a better grow. We apply the scientific method in
this research.
Objective
1. To study the effect of water, fertilizer and houguland solution in the growth of the plants.
2. To determine which factor that effect plant’s growth.
3. To be able to apply the scientific method while doing this experiment.
Hypothesis
The plants with houguland solution will growth healthy and fresh compare to plant with fertilizer
and water.

3. Methodology
1. Design
The experiments used three different factors that effect the growth of the plant which are water,
fertilizer and houguland solution.
2. Apparatus
Soil, seed of okra plant, organic fertilizer, polybag and houguland solution.
3. Procedure
This experiment starts with germination of the seed of okra plant. Nine polybag is used where
three polybag is used for control, three polybag for fertilizer and the other three for houguland
solution. The first week all the plants are supplied with water only. After a week, the three
polybag is supplied with organic fertilizer and the other three is supplied with houguland
solution. The three remaining polybag is used as a control for this experiment. The organic
fertilizer and the houguland solution are added to the plant once a week. The length and width of
leaves of the okra plant is measured and the number of leaves is calculated. The experiment is
observed for four week and all the result is tabulated in the table.

4. Discussion
The ovule matures into a seed before it is dispersed from the parent plant. The seed is the
mature ovule and consists of a seed coat, endorsperm and embryo. In angiosperms it is enclosed
within a fruit. The structure of seed contains seed coat and endosperm. The seed coat is known as
the testa that normally formed from one or both interguments whereas the endosperm is triploid
cell which dividing immediately after fertilization and sometimes an acellular mass is forming.
After the first transverse cell division, the upper cell forms the shoot, cotyledons and also the
root.
The germination of the seeds is important stages in plant growth. Even though the embryo is
formed and has its primary tissue well develops, the mature seed may be stored for varying
periods of time and still retain its viability. Viability is the abilty of seed to germinate. Only
when the proper environmental conditions are provided, the seed revitalized and produced a
seedling. The environmental requisites for seed germination include suitable oxygen
concentrations, temperatures, moisture, and in some cases light. When those requirements are
fulfill, water penetrated the seed, the tissues of the endosperm consisting of stored foods like
macromolecules of starch, protein or lipids and cotyledons start the metabolic process called the
digestion. The breakdown of these macromolecules into their simpler components.
We can see through naked eye, the imbition process produced a swollen seed, with a large
increase in volumes and weight simply from the uptake of water. The growing point of the shoot
above the point of cotyledon attachment is called the epicotyls, and the section of stem below the
cotyledons is called the hypocotyls. At the base of the hypocotyls, the transition zone separates
the shoot from the root. The growing tip of the epicotyls is usually reffered to as the plumule.

5. Picture 1 : Seed germination
A majority of growing plants contains as much as 90 percent water. Water is one of the
most essential factors required in growth of plants. Water plays a crucial role for efficient
photosynthesis, respiration, transpiration and transportation of minerals and other nutrients
through the plant. Water is also responsible for functioning of the stomata opening of leaves and
also the source of pressure for the directed growth of roots through the soil. If a plant’s soil has
too much water, the roots can rot and the plant cannot get enough oxygen from the soil. If there
is not enough water for a plant, the nutrients it needs cannot travel through the plant. A plant
cannot grow if it does not have healthy roots, so the proper balance of water is key when
growing plants.
Organic fertilizers are naturally occurring fertilizers for example compost, manure, or
naturally occurring mineral deposits. The naturally occurring organic fertilizer includes manure,
slurry, worm castings, peat, seaweed, humic acid, and guano. Organic fertilizers will help
improve the soil of plants. Healthy soil is the long term key to success of growth of plants.
Without fertile soil, plants cannot thrive. We have to keep the soil healthy and replenished with
rich, natural minerals and organic matter and everything else will grow healthy and strong.

6. Organic fertilizers do not contain nutrients in easily usable form. When they are mixed
into the soil, the microorganisms like bacteria that are in the soil, have to work on the fertilizer,
break it up and release the nutrients. This is a slow process and so there is no danger that too
many nutrients are ever available to the plant. As such there is no chance for a ‘plant burn’ when
organic fertilizers are used. Since organic fertilizers need these microbes to work on them to
release the nutrients, they end up stimulating the growth of these microorganisms, ensuring long
term fertility of the soil.
Nutrition is just as important in plants. Cellular metabolism leading to the production of
the organic molecules characteristic of all life requires only a few essential elements. In spite of
this chemical and geological diversity, only sixteen elements are considered essential for all
plants. Each element, whether a macroelement or microelement, does have a specific function in
seed plant growth. All these nutrients we called it as houguland. Each of these nutrients has a
critical function in plants and is required in varying amounts in plant tissue. Macronutrients
nutrients required in the largest amount in plants. It can be broken into two more groups which
the primary nutrients are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. These major nutrients usually are
lacking from the soil first because plants use large amounts for their growth and survival. The
secondary nutrients are calcium, magnesium, and sulfur. There are usually enough of these
nutrients in the soil so fertilization is not always needed.
Micronutrients like iron, copper, manganese, zinc, boron, molybdenum and chlorine are
required in relatively smaller amounts. Additional mineral nutrient elements which are beneficial
to plants but not necessarily essential include sodium, cobalt, vanadium, nickel, selenium,
aluminum and silicon. The nutrient elements differ in the form they are absorbed by the plant, by
their functions in the plant, by their mobility in the plant and by the plant deficiency or toxicity
symptoms characteristic of the nutrient.
Plants require 13 mineral nutrient elements for growth. The elements that are required or
necessary for plants to complete their life cycle are called essential plant nutrients. Additional
mineral nutrient elements which are beneficial to plants but not necessarily essential include
sodium, cobalt, vanadium, nickel, selenium, aluminum and silicon. Apart from the mineral
nutrients, plants also required the non-minerals nutrients to promote their growth. These non-
mineral nutrients are such as carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. The nutrient elements differ in the

7. form they are absorbed by the plant, by their functions in the plant, by their mobility in the plant
and by the plant deficiency or toxicity symptoms characteristic of the nutrient.
When some of these nutrients are not being well diffuse into the plants, this situation can
lead to plant nutrients deficiency or toxicity. Nutrient deficiency or toxicity symptoms often
differ among species and varieties of plants. A nutrient deficiency occurs when the nutrient is not
in sufficient quantity to meet the needs of the growing plant. Nutrient toxicity occur when a plant
nutrient is in excess and decreases plant growth or quality. One way to understand the
differences in nutrient deficiency symptoms among the plants is by knowing the function and the
relative mobility of the nutrient within the plant. Table 3 describes the general symptoms of
nutrient deficiency and excess often observed for those nutrients. Some nutrients, such as
nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, chlorine and zinc, can be easily remobilized within
the plant from old plant parts to actively growing plant parts such as young leaves. Other
nutrients, such as sulphur, iron, copper, manganese, boron and calcium, are not easily
remobilized within the plant. Therefore, the deficiency of the mobile elements usually initially
occurs with older leaves while that of the immobile nutrients occurs with the young leaves or
stem tips.
There are five types of deficiency or toxicity symptoms that usually can be observed on
plants. The first one is chlorosis where some parts of the plants tissue become yellow tissue due
to limitations on chlorophyll synthesis. This yellowing can be generalized over the entire plant,
localized over entire leaves or isolated between some leaf veins. Contrastly, necrosis is the
disease that the plant tissue dies sometimes in spots. Other than that, plants also easily turn to a
purple or reddish colour due to the accumulation of the anthocyanine in their body structure and
the plants are lack of new growth. However, sometimes the new growth continues but it is
stunted or reduced compared to normal plants. Sometimes, nutrient deficiencies are mistaken for
insects and disease problems, drought, heat stress, cold stress and salt stress but after some
experience, it becomes easier to spot specific deficiencies in some plants.
We measured the height of plants, the width of leaves and the number of leaves everyday.
In the second day, we can see all the okra plant only have cotyledons. Then, only the next few
days the width of the leave can be measure. For the okra plant that is supplied with tap water, the
height of the plant, the width of leave and the number of leave is increase for the first week. The
result is same for the okra plant that is supplied with houguland solution and organic fertilizer.

8. Among these three treatments, the okra plant that is served as a control in this experiment has the
highest height which is 5.5 cm. Then in the second week, we can see the change in length of the
okra plant where it continues to increase in the length of the plant. The width of the leave also
increase but the number of the leave is only increase slightly in the 13th day. The increase in the
length of plant, the width of leave and the number of leave is probably because of the okra plant
get enough nutrients that is needed for growth.
After two week, we can see the growth of the plant is much growing and fresh. Overall,
the result show the length of the okra plant is constantly increasing same as the increasing in the
width of the okra plant. The number of the leave is not increase every day. The number of leave
rise only in certain day. We can see the growth of plant better based on their length and the width
of the plant. At the end of the week 4, we can conclude that the plant that serves as the control
for this experiment has the highest length compare to the plant that is supplied with the organic
fertilizer and houguland solution which is 20 cm for control okra plant, 18.5 cm for okra plant
with the houguland solution and 17 cm is okra plant that supplied with organic fertilizer. Based
on the result obtain, we can calculate the average measurement of the okra plants. For the length
of the okra plant, the average is around 11.8 cm for plant with tap water, 11.3 cm for the plant
that has houguland solution and 11.0 cm for the plant with the organic fertilizer. The average of
the width of the plant is around 1.3 cm for plant with the organic fertilizer and 1.8 cm for both
plant that serve as the control for the experiment and the plant with the houguland solution.
Besides that, the dry mass for the plant that serve as control is 0.180 g, 0.169 g for plant
that contain organic fertilizatioan and 0.396 g for plant that contain houguland solution. From the
data result, we can see the grow of the plant when treated with tap water shows a greater growth
compared the plant that treated with houguland and fertilizer. In the theory, it state that the plant
with houguland solution will grows fresh and healthy, but from our experiment we get the result
plant that supply with water more fresh and healthy. This may occured due to not get enough
sunlight and the plant is watered not constantly everyday. Other than that, the nutrient in
houguland is probably more than enough that is need for the growth of the plant. That is why the
the length of plant with houguland solution is shorter than the plant with tap water.

9. Conclusion
From our observation and measurements, we found that the hypothesis is not accepted.
After completed the experiment, it shows the plant that have been threated with tap water only
has the greatest rate of growth compared the houguland and fertilizer treatments. During this
project, we have learned how to conduct the experiment with scientific methods. Otherwise, a
group cooperation and team work needed to complete this project.

10. References
David R. Hershey (1995). Plant biology science projects. United States : John Wiley & Sons.
Roles of the 16 essential nutrients in crop development. Get on May 17, 2012 at
http://www.eldoradochemical.com/fertiliz1.htm
W.F. Bennett (1993). Nutrient dificiencies & toxicities in crop plant. Get on May 16, 2012 at
http://www.cartage.org.lb/en/themes/Sciences/BotanicalSciences/PlantHormones/Essenti
alPlant/EssentialPlant.htm
Five advantages for organic fertilizer get at http://edu.udym.com/five-advantages-of-organic-
fertilizers/ on Mei 16th 2012.