Experiment

This experiment was aimed to prove that using abrasion with sandpaper on barley seeds would negatively affect the process of their germination. It was predicted that the seeds would not grow after applying the sandpaper on their surface, and leaving them just covered with water would lead to opposite.

Barley seeds were divided into 3 groups: swiped 0 times, swiped 3 times, and swiped 6 times. After the sandpaper was applied to the second and third groups, all three groups of seeds were placed in a Petri dish and covered with water. To get the most precise results, the process of seeds’ germination was monitored on the daily basis.

The regular process of seed germination was altered, based on soaking seeds, draining water and regular rinsing of the seeds until germination by applying the abrasion on their surfaces. The group of seeds, treated with water only, resulted into 75% of successful germs. Second group, which received 3 swipes per seed, provided 85% of successful results. The third group with 6 swipes per seed resulted in 70% of successful germination. Applying 6 swipes appeared to have a negative effect on the germination process. 3 swipes per seed gave the best result in the experiment. The unaffected seeds, treated solely with water, scored an average result.

Experiment proved that applying an average number of abrasions on a single seed increases the chances of its successful germination. Furthermore, the initially stated hypothesis failed, as the unaffected seeds scored less successfully than the ones, on which the abrasion was applied. It can be suggested that using moderate abrasion on seeds during the sowing processes, as it will affect the germination rate by 10% compared to the standard measurements.