School Projects and Science Fairs
February 12, 1999
I am doing a science fair project dealing with plants. My topic concerns the
effect of music on plants. since I live in the south orange county region
in California, I need to know what is the quickest growing plant or flower
I can get a local store that grows indoors. thanks for your help.
Probably the fastest growing common indoor plants you can find would be the
Coleus
(Coleus blumei), Fatsia japonica
(Aralia sieboldii),
or a Fatshedera
(Fatshedera lizei).
The
Coleus is
known for its bright foliage colors and will make a nice house plant as long
as it receives sufficient light and food. It may also be grown outdoors as
an annual in partial shade. The Fatsia as a house plant grows proportionate
to the size container it in. It has large
(6 inch) maple type leaves.
Fatshedera is a hybrid cross between the Fatsia and English ivy. It grows
quickly as a shrubby vine with 3 inch leaves.
For the purposes of your project, you might want to grow a few Castor bean
(Ricinus
communis) seeds in a pot. The plant grows to large for most homes, but
is one of the fastest growing plants I've seen.
(up to 15 feet in a season) The
'beans' are extremely toxic!
For my botany class at school we are growing Geraniums. I have two redeye
orbits that are both putting out their first new leaves and doing well.
To encourage growth of leaves and flowers should I keep with a 10-10-10
fertilizer or are there other supplements I could add to help them along?
I also don't know how to keep them cool while still exposing them to direct
sunlight in my greenhouse. Do you have any ideas? Thank you for your help,
your web page was the best I found!
Geraniums are heavy feeders, so you
could increase the strength of
the fertilizer
slightly, but I wouldn't really recommend that. Adding
supplemental lighting from 'grow' type lights to extend the length of the
day will probably do more good than adding nutrients. When they are growing
in a greenhouse situation, Geraniums will do fine in partial shade. As far
as keeping the greenhouse cooler, you'll just have to keep the air moving,
and adding fresh air from outdoors if the weather permits venting the greenhouse.
I am doing a science fair project on cut flower (specifically roses) preservation.
I am required to do research and have been looking around the web for information
on common, new, and de-bunked notions about how to make cut rose last longer.
Should they be cut at a certain point for maximum post cut preservation?
Should they be refrigerated? kept in water, 7 up, water+floral packet,
other? anywhere you can refer me or anything you can send me would be most
helpful.
*> Early morning or evening are the best times
to cut roses, while the stems and petals are full of water.
* Cut the stem at an angle with sharp, clean pruners.
* The flowers should be cut while the bud is still
tight, just above a five-leaf.
* Shorter stems tend to last longer than long
stemmed roses.
* While it is tempting to remove leaves and thorns
from the stem, this will cause the flower to deteriorate much sooner.
* A cut flower preservative added to the
COLD water
in the vase will undoubtedly extend the life of the bloom.
* Cooler temperatures extend the life of a cut
rose considerably.
* Refrigerating your roses will preserve them,
but the petals will lose moisture, so it is best to cover each bud with a
baggie.
* Roses kept in the dark last longer than those
in bright light.
* I have heard that adding lemon-lime soda, lemon
juice with a little sugar, aspirin, vinegar, or beer will prolong the life
of the cut rose.... I think I'll stick with the commercial preservatives from
the nursery.
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