Photosynthesis Lab
Leaf Disc Assay
G Block
Comparison of the Photosynthetic Rate of Spinach and Mint
In the experiment, we found that the photosynthetic rate of
mint was far higher than the rate of spinach, proving our
hypothesis incorrect. The photosynthetic rate of mint was
0.028 floats per second (10 chads by 6 minutes), and the
rate of spinach was 0.003 floats per second (10 chads by
10 minutes). Sources of error in the experiment may
include not covering the mint and spinach leaves quickly
enough, so they might have started to photosynthesize
before we were ready. Additionally, only one trial was
conducted, so this is sure to provide less reliable results.
This lab explores photosynthesis, which we are learning in
class. We also learned about pigments, especially
chlorophyll, which collect energy from sunlight in
photoautotrophs, and the way in which light energy is
obtained from the leaves by reflecting certain colors of
light on the visible light spectrum and absorbing others.
Hypothesis: If mint and spinach leaves are similar shades of green, then their photosynthetic rates will be similar.
Anupama Balasubramanian, Kai-Lou Yue, Diana Zhou, Angela Lee
The rate of photosynthesis for the spinach leaf
chads is clearly greater than that of the
bamboo leafs chads.
This result aligns with our hypothesis of the
spinach having a faster rate. This faster rate is
due to its greater amount of chlorophyll, which
is indicative in the spinach’s leaf darker green
color.
Andrea, Janice, Aubrey, Katie
Comparison of Photosynthetic Rates of Spinach and
Bok Choy Leaves
Overall, we found that
photosynthesis occurs faster in
spinach leaves than in bok
choy leaves, concluded from
the faster rate of floats per
second. The spinach leaves
probably have more
chlorophyll, meaning that the
spinach leaves can absorb
more light, causing the LD
reactions occur faster.
Spinach-- .0357floats/1sec
Bok Choy-- .0238floats/1sec
By Steph
Miller, Kayla
Chavier, Emily
Wu, and Saif
Khan
Leaf Disc Assay~ Lab Results:
Time
(min)
0
mi
n
1
mi
n
2
mi
n
3
mi
n
4
mi
n
5
mi
n
6
mi
n
7
mi
n
8
mi
n
9
mi
n
10
mi
n
Spinac
h
0
0
2
5
11
13
-
-
-
-
-
Dracen
a Plant
0
0
2
2
2
3
-
-
-
-
-
Lamp Voltage: 200V
Rate of Floating Leaves:
Spinach: 2.6 floats/min
Dracena Plant: 0.6 floats/min
Overall, the spinach had a faster reaction rate
than the Dracena plant. However, there may
have been a failure in the experimental
design to account for the waxy cuticle of the
Dracena plant leaves, since it might have
prolonged the release of oxygen bubbles.
Control Graph
Oak Leaf Graph
Hypothesis
If spinach and oak leaves are tested to find their
photosynthetic rates, then spinach will have a
higher rate because it has a darker green
pigment containing more chloroplasts for
photosynthesis, and the oak leaves are
breaking down and have more veins.
Notes
● Our hypothesis was accepted, the spinach leaves had a faster
rate of photosynthesis. All 14 leaf chads floated within five
minutes.
● Only 3 out of the eight oak leaves that sank floated within
five minutes.
Pictures
Dan, Satish, Rohitash, and Kevin
●
●
●
From our data we observed that the experimental plant, mint leaves, carried out a faster rate of
photosynthesis, with .08 floats/sec than the control plant, spinach, with a slower rate of .05 floats/sec.
This supports our hypothesis because we stated that the experimental plant, mint, will photosynthesize
faster than the control plant, spinach.
The mint discs floated more suddenly, as indicated by the higher rate. The spinach discs were slower to
float up, but eventually would reach the top. By half this time though, all of the mint discs were already
floating