The Effect of Leucobryum Glaucum on the Growth of Brassica Rapa and Soil Composition

Sydni MooreFollow

School Name

Spring Valley High School

Grade Level

10th Grade

Presentation Topic

Botany

Presentation Type

Non-Mentored

Oral Presentation Award

3rd Place

Abstract

Determining if mosses have a positive effect on plant growth can provide a cheaper and more efficient way of fertilizing plants. Synthetic fertilizers raise problems because of their inability to have nutrients readily available because they take longer than natural fertilizers to deposit into the soil. While natural fertilizers can be used, they offer low levels of nutrients and natural compost can take a long time to develop enough to use. This leads mass agricultural growers to look for cheaper and more efficient ways of fertilizing plants. It was hypothesized that the plants grown with moss around them and in the soil will grow faster and develop better than the plants without the moss. Different levels of Leucobryum glaucum were tested in a low, 20% by volume, and high, 40% by volume, concentration. The low concentration was made by taking 1200mL of soil and replacing 240mL with Leucobryum glaucum. The high concentration was made by taking 1200ml of soil and replacing 480mL with Leucobryum glaucum. The plants were then allowed to grow for 3 weeks and the growth in cm was measured once a week. An ANOVA test for the final week, (F(2,87)=1.78, p=.174), showed that there was no significant difference between the treatments of 20% moss, 40% moss, and control.

Location

Founders Hall 111 B

Start Date

3-30-2019 9:30 AM

Presentation Format

Oral and Written

Group Project

No

COinS
 
Mar 30th, 9:30 AM

The Effect of Leucobryum Glaucum on the Growth of Brassica Rapa and Soil Composition

Founders Hall 111 B

Determining if mosses have a positive effect on plant growth can provide a cheaper and more efficient way of fertilizing plants. Synthetic fertilizers raise problems because of their inability to have nutrients readily available because they take longer than natural fertilizers to deposit into the soil. While natural fertilizers can be used, they offer low levels of nutrients and natural compost can take a long time to develop enough to use. This leads mass agricultural growers to look for cheaper and more efficient ways of fertilizing plants. It was hypothesized that the plants grown with moss around them and in the soil will grow faster and develop better than the plants without the moss. Different levels of Leucobryum glaucum were tested in a low, 20% by volume, and high, 40% by volume, concentration. The low concentration was made by taking 1200mL of soil and replacing 240mL with Leucobryum glaucum. The high concentration was made by taking 1200ml of soil and replacing 480mL with Leucobryum glaucum. The plants were then allowed to grow for 3 weeks and the growth in cm was measured once a week. An ANOVA test for the final week, (F(2,87)=1.78, p=.174), showed that there was no significant difference between the treatments of 20% moss, 40% moss, and control.