Capillary Action In this activity, you will learn how capillary action works and how it helps plants survive. Estimated time to complete: 1.5 hours (spread across two days) You’ll need these materials: 3 large beakers, cups, or jars tap water blue, red, and green food coloring a spoon 3 fresh, white carnations with long stems a pair of sharp scissors Stay safe! Be careful while handling sharp objects. Follow these steps to investigate capillary action, and then answer the questions that follow: Fill each beaker with about 8 ounces of tap water. Add 20 to 30 drops of food coloring to each beaker. Use a different color for each beaker. Use the spoon to stir the food coloring and water mixture in each beaker. To avoid mixing the colors together, be sure to clean the spoon after stirring each beaker. Use a pair of sharp scissors to cut about 2 inches off the bottom of each carnation stem. Try to cut the stems at about a 45-degree angle. Place each carnation in one of the beakers of colored water. Make sure only part of the stem is submerged. The flowers should not touch the water. Leave the carnations in the beakers overnight. Observe the carnations the next day. Record your observations and analysis by answering the following questions. Part A Describe how the carnations look after sitting in the colored water overnight. Do they look different than they did the day before? Do they all look the same? If not, describe how they are different. Font Sizes Characters used: 0 / 15000 Part B What does the change you observed in Part A demonstrate about the stem of a carnation? Your answer should describe the structure and function of a carnation’s stem using evidence from the experiment. Font Sizes Characters used: 0 / 15000 Part C Read this information about capillary action. How do you think capillary action is related to the change you observed in Part A? Font Sizes Characters used: 0 / 15000 Part D What properties of water allow capillary action to occur? Describe how each property you identify is related to capillary action. Font Sizes Characters used: 0 / 15000 Part E How do you think capillary action is related to the survival of plants? Do you think land plants could survive if water didn’t have the properties that make capillary action possible? Explain your answer in terms of the processes plants need to survive. Font Sizes Characters used: 0 / 15000 Part F Many minerals that plants need to grow and survive are found in the surrounding soil. For example, nitrogen and phosphorus are both minerals required for plant growth. Plants can’t directly absorb minerals in their solid form from the soil. Instead, plants rely on water to help them get the minerals that they need. Based on what you know about the properties of water, how do you think water helps plants get minerals from the soil?