Celery Transpiration

Overview

How do nutrients get all the way from the roots of a plant to the leaves?  Using colored water, we can track these highways in the celery plant.

Chemicals

Materials

  • Celery

  • Food dye

  • 200 mL of water

  • Glass beaker

  • ​Knife

Procedure

In glass beaker, pour in water and drop in 5 drops of food coloring.

1.

Cut 1 inch off from bottom of celery and place in beaker.

2.

Leave undisturbed for 24 hours or until the colored water "transpired" all the way to the leaves (the leaves will change to the food dye color).

3.

The Science Behind the Reaction

Where there was once water from the roots, it is now replaced with the colored water, highlighting the intricate system of nutrient travel. These tubes are called xylem and are part of the plant’s vascular system. This is how plants transport the water and nutrients from the soil up to the very highest leaves.

Keep Experimenting!

Using the same theory of transpiration, place white carnations in test tubes and fill with different colored water.