Notes

Research Plan Template - Standard Project
Title
Hydroponics and its effects on plant growth _______________________________________________________

Rationale (Problem)
A few sentences explaining the global or societal need for this research. Why does anyone care about this research?
_Hydroponics can be used around the world by farmers as a less stress-free way to grow their plants. This is because, with hydroponics, a singular person can control everything: the amount of light the plant receives, the amount of water the plant is given, and whether or not a plant will be given water on a certain day. This takes away the worries that come from the unexpectedness of the weather. This is because nobody has to worry about a plant receiving too much water or too little because it rained too much or too little, that person gets to decide that. This means that knowing whether or not hydroponics will affect plant growth is important because it can be the factor that either pulls farmers to or away from this idea of growing plants without soil._______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Research Question
_How does the absence of soil affect plant growth? _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hypothesis/es
What is being tested. (Identify your hypothesis, variables, control, and constants)
(Suggestion: If, then format. If something is done, then something will result.)
__If soil is replaced with water as the plant’s source of nutrition, the plant growth rate won’t change.
Independent variable: source of the plant’s nutrition (which is changed from soil to water)__
Dependent variable: the rate of plant growth
_Constants: type of plant, length of plant at the beginning, the period of time the plants are tested in
Control: Another group of plants that will be tested in soil rather than water ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Procedure
Sequentially numbered steps that cover the procedure from beginning to end. The steps should be detailed enough for someone else to be able to replicate the study from your steps. This section can be subdivided by different sections of the procedure such as safety, experimentation, data analysis, disposal, etc..
Safety: These steps will vary according to the types of projects.
Grab two buckets, two plant pots, one plastic tray, one incandescent lamp, soil, water (enough to fill your bucket), and a growing medium along with your four plants that are the same type and the same length
Grab a pair of gloves
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PHBA: Aseptic technique, including, but not limited to, goggles, type of gloves, closed toe shoes, working conditions (BSL cabinet, etc), disposal
Hazardous chemicals or devices: Safety equipment used, including, but not limited to, (goggles, gloves, closed toe shoes), working conditions (fume hood, etc), fire extinguisher if combustion is possible.
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Experimentation:
These sequential, numbered steps should continue from safety. This must thoroughly cover the entire study. Make sure to include the experimental design and data collection procedures.
PHBA: organism(s) used
Chemicals: concentration, dilution(s), disposal.
Get a bucket and fill it with soil
Deeply plant two of your plants within the soil
Place your two plants by a window and wait one week
Get your two pots and place the growing medium of your choice
Deeply root your plants into the growing medium
Get the other bucket and fill it will water
Turn on the air pump and place it inside the bucket
Get the plastic tray and cut holes to fit the plant pots
Place the plant pots inside the holes
Place the tray inside the bucket so that pots are secluded inside the water
Turn on the lamp with the light facing the bucket and wait a week
Data Analysis:
Include a description of the techniques or statistical tests that will be employed to analyze the results of the experimentation.
__After waiting a week, you will use a ruler to measure the length of each plant to see how the difference in their nutrition source affected how fast they grew/__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Disposal
This is necessary for PHBAs, chemicals or materials that require special handling for disposals.
_1. Dispose of all of your materials (excluding the lamp) in a nearby trashcan
2. Put the water from one of the buckets in a sink or onto the grass outside

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Annotated Bibliography
Current journal sources on your topic, with one paragraph summary of each source. (Middle school should have at least four sources, MLA format. High school should have at least six, two of which should come from academic journals, preferably peer reviewed, MLA or APA format.)

Ahmad, S. (2020, January). Hydroponics model flowchart based on proposed optimization and fuzzy logic control scheme . [Illustration]. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Hydroponics-model-flowchart-based-on-proposed-optimization-and-fuzzy-logic-control-scheme_fig3_338430382 ( This source goes through the steps when dealing with a complex hydroponic garden. The first step is to gather data on things like humidity and water level through sensors, and this data was collected for the data acquisition unit. The second step is to apply the optimization scheme to find out the optimal conditions and energy consumption according to how you have set up the system, power source, and system constraints. Lastly, the third step is to use the fuzzy logic control module which is used for setting the working level and operational duration to the actuators based on optimized data and current actual data.)
How to get started with hydroponics. (2018, December 13). Bangor Daily News (Bangor, ME). (This source discussed the advantages and disadvantages of hydroponic gardening. Some advantages include the fact that you can more easily check on your plant’s health because the roots are more visible, getting rid of soil gets rid of one of the main sources of plant diseases, and you no longer have to worry about the unexpectedness of weather. While some disadvantages include that hydroponic gardens require more maintenance and the resources required to make a hydroponic garden are very expensive.)
Patent issued for smart pot (S-pot): A hydroponic smart flower vase system for ornamental crops (USPTO 11516977). (2022, December 30). Entertainment Newsweekly, 1654. (This source talks about the four parts of a specific hydroponic garden. In this garden, the four parts are called chambers. Chamber 1 includes a pH sensor that is used to measure the acidity of the first fluid, a temperature sensor that is used to measure the temperature of the first fluid, and a humidity sensor located on an interior wall of the first chamber above the first fluid that is used to measure the humidity based on the content of water vapor. Chamber 2 includes a second floor to divide the second chamber and the third chamber, a second fluid, a submersible pump of the plurality, a second ultrasonic level sensor located on the underside of the first floor used to measure the level of the second fluid, and at least two pipes through holes in the second floor. Chamber 3 includes a submersible pump of the plurality, an ultrasonic level sensor located on the underside of the third floor which is used to measure the level of the third fluid, and at least one pipe through a hole in the third floor. Lastly, Chamber 4 includes a submersible pump of the plurality, an ultrasonic level sensor that’s located on the underside of the third floor and is used to measure the level of the fourth fluid.)
Robinson, R. (2001). Hydroponics. In R. Robinson (Ed.), Plant Sciences (Vol. 3, pp. 35-36). Macmillan Reference USA. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3408000186/GPS?u=jeff53810&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=234ab520 (This source discusses the basic ideas behind hydroponic gardens and how they came to be. The use of modern hydroponic gardens today can be credited to Julius von Sachs who originally experimented with hydroponics to discover its effects on plant nutrition. This source defines hydroponics as the process of growing plants without soil, and although it only represents a small percentage of the market, hydroponic gardens can be used to grow expensive crops that are sold in the commercial market.)
Schelthoff, P. (2021, August 17). Parts of A basic hydroponic system- diagram [Illustration]. https://simplesoilhydroponics.com/hydroponic-growing/parts-of-hydroponic-system-diagram/ (This source discusses the basic parts of a hydroponic garden and how those parts are used. The basic parts include: grow lights/sunlight, reservoir, submersible pump, grow tray, nutrient solutions, air pump, and growing medium. First, while the plants are receiving nutrients from their light source, they are also receiving nutrients from water underneath them. This water comes from the reservoir which holds the water and nutrient mix. This nutrient mix is also known as nutrient solutions, and this nutrient mix (along with the water) is then transferred to the growth tray (which holds the plants) by the submersible pump. After this, the soil then absorbs the nutrients from the nutrient mix and the water and nutrients are transferred to the roots of the plant by the growing medium. The growing medium also works to support the plants. Lastly, the air pump is kind of on its own outside the system while supplying the plant roots with oxygen.)
Types of hydroponic farming [Illustration]. (n.d.). https://www.tractorjunction.com/blog/hydroponic-farming-in-india-information/ (This source goes over the parts used in different types of hydroponic gardens. The six types of hydroponic gardens discussed are aeroponics, nutrient film technique, drip hydroponics system, ebb and flow, wick, and deep water culture. The parts of aeroponics are a timer, nutrient pump, mist nozzle, reservoir, and water/nutrient mix. The parts of the nutrient film technique are the grow tray, nutrient return, nutrient pump, reservoir, air stone, and air pump. The parts of the drip hydroponics system are drip manifold, drip lines, grow tray, nutrient pump, reservoir, air stone, air pump, and overflow. The parts of the ebb and flow technique are a grow tray, water pump, reservoir, and nutrient solution. The parts of the wick technique are a tray, grow media, air pump, air stone, wick, and nutrient solution. Lastly, the parts of the deep water culture technique are a styrofoam sheet, an air stone, and an airline air pump.