Photosynthesis Lab Report

Between February 27th and March 2nd my partner and I conducted an experiment about the photosynthetic rate of spinach discs. We were hypothesizing that if we place all 6 individual cups underneath a different color of light, the spinach discs that produce enough oxygen will have the highest amount rise, which will show us the optimal color of light for photosynthesis. These different colors of light included blue, red, green, fluorescent, regular light, and classroom light. The classroom light was our control cup during the lab. Before we conducted our experiment, the class learned about the photosynthetic process of, not only spinach discs, but plants in general. As I did more research on photosynthesis, the Calvin Cycle, wavelengths and pigments required for a proper equation of
On day one, the red and blue light were our first two colors of light. We did not expect the results we received from trial one, therefore we added a second trial. From our research we concluded that the photosynthetic rate is quickest when blue and violet wavelengths are projected on the discs. However, the spinach discs under the red light had a much higher count after the 10 minutes compared to the blue light. On day 2 when we tested the green and regular light, we also had unexpected results, having three to four more discs rising in the cup with regular light than the other colored light. Finally on day 3, florescent and class light was tested, meeting our predictions. We both inferred that the florescent light would have the highest percentage of discs that would rise, and all 15 rose during both trials. Out of all different colored lights, the florescent and regular light spinach discs rose the quickest, and the blue by far rose the slowest. After we concluded the experiment we learned the reason behind the use of florescent lights around growing plants, especially for rapid