How to grow a potato in a pot
How to grow a potato in a pot : Botany science Experiment for kids
Potatoes, an ancient human staple crop, reproduce in a somewhat unusual way. Like many other tubers, they reproduce vegetatively. Do a little research and see if you can find out just what this means. Then get ready for these good science fair projects involving potato growth.
MATERIALS:
- 2 to 3 seed potatoes (available at a garden supply store and some grocery stores)
- three small planting pots
- permanent marker
- high-quality soil
- sharp knife
- water
- ruler
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Find the eyes (or “buds”) on all of your potatoes. If there are none yet, leave the potato in the sun for a little while in a shallow dish of water, and wait for them to appear.
2. Label one of the planting pots “eyes only,” another “with eyes” and a third “without eyes”
3. Once all of your potatoes have a few eyes on them, you are ready to cut them up. Carefully cut off several eyes from one potato and put them in the appropriate pot. Cut the other potatoes in such a way that some of the pieces have eyes and others do not.
4. Make sure the pieces have plenty of soil under them and an inch or so covering them
5. Water each pot (taking care not to over-water), and place them in the sun.
6. Come back every few days to water the pots and observe any growth. Write down your observations on a data sheet.
As you can see, good science fair projects don’t have to be difficult to do!
Other Biology science fair projects
Do Plants Grow Towards Light: Biology Science Fair Project on Phototropism
How to Extract DNA From a Banana – Biology Experiment
