Post Assignment #4: Audrey Malone

     Some abiotic factors that our broccoli plants are by our rocks, dirt, and the fence that lines the garden bed. The broccoli plants depend on dirt due to the fact that dirt has nutrients that the plants depend on for survival. Another abiotic factor that is important is water. Plants rely on water for survival because water is crucial for photosyntheis that creates energy that the plants rely on to survive . Lastly the fence is used to keep other things out of the garden, so the broccoli plants don't get stepped on by humans. Some biotic factors that our broccoli plants rely on are worms. Worms are important because they decompose dead plants and animals giving nutrients back into the soil. After the plants absorb the nutrients in the soil helping plants grow. Another biotic factor are pollinators, pollinators are helpful because when the broccoli begins to flower then, the pollen from other plants will spread on the broccoli plant so it will blossom.
     I know that our broccoli plants are engaged in competition with weeds. We know this because they are competing for water and nutrients in the soil. The winner is decided through these by competitions by which plant lives and which plant dies. The determination is complicated because sometimes a plant can continue to grow even if it's losing nutrients or the plant could continue to grow, but end up being very small and malnourished. Another type of relationship that occurs with the broccoli is parasitism. This occurs if a slug is eating the leaves of the broccoli plant. Therefore the broccoli plant is getting nothing out of the relationship making it parasitism.
     Lastly our broccoli plant is involved in secondary succession. It seems like a primary producer(autotroph) because the broccoli plant can produce it's own food by using photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is based on water and  carbon dioxide . It is also secondary succession because the dirt and other plants were already growing in that ecosystem making it secondary succession. All in all I hope our broccoli plants continue to grow.

Post Assignment#3: Audrey Malone

     Our small broccoli plants have changed throughout time in many different ways. For example they have grown in the sense that they have gained some bigger leaves and grown a little taller. Although they haven't changed too much in their size their leaves have gained some darker shades of green on their leaves. Also physically they have thicker stems and will continue to grow. We now have a total of two healthy broccoli plants living in the garden.
     To begin our plants take part in the water cycle because as we water our plants they absorb the water from in the roots and preform transpiration. Also they can get water from other places for example they can get water from rain. Although there has not been much although that is a possibility. Also they could get water from other people who have watered the broccoli. Overall water is important to the plants because they use the water to do photosynthesis. Although the broccoli can also collect water from the leaves of the plants which drip down into the soil and the plants are able to absorb the water taken in by the roots, and broccoli can collect water from being watered by humans as well.
     Next the plants contribute to the carbon cycle by practicing photosynthesis. Where they take in the carbon dioxide and use the carbon for glycerol which later becomes ATP and a by product of this process is oxygen which humans use to breathe. Lastly our plants are helping the nitrogen cycle because they take in nitrogen through the soil and use it for nutrients. Without plants in the ecosystem the carbon dioxide in the air would most likely pile up and become fatal to humans. An example is fossil fuels contributing carbon dioxide to the air, and because of that the air is polluted with the carbon dioxide becoming dangerous.
     Next, our broccoli plants take part in the nitrogen cycle everyday. The nitrogen cycle is important because it is part of amino acids. Plants play an important role by collecting nitrogen from the soil. Also when the broccoli plants die they will release nitrogen back into the soil when they decompose. Therefore the nitrogen will be recycled, so the nitrogen cycle can start again.
     All in all our broccoli plants contribute to not only just for food later on, but also now through the many cycles they participate in, and what they contribute to the environment. As you can see not only our broccoli plants, but all other plants are important to the ecosystem we have created in our garden.

Post assignment #3 : Elena

Over the course of the week our two little seedlings are growing up into healthy broccolis. So far one of them has grown pretty tall and has two stems that are attached. Both seedlings have grown a little thicker and a little taller. They have grown many leaves that are heart shaped, making it easy to tell them apart from weeds. The seedlings are a light green color. We hope that our little brocs will continue their growth to become healthy big broccolis.

Out plants participate in the movement of water in the biosphere by absorbing water through their roots. This process is called root uptake. Our seedling’s leaves also catch rain and the water droplets are evaporated via: transportation. The water that our plant absorbs helps it with photosynthesis, growing and developing. The water gives the plant nutrients to grow. This has allowed our plant to grow taller and bigger leaves.

Our plants participate in the movement of carbon in the biosphere by absorbing it through its leaves and using the carbon and water for photosynthesis. Our plant uses the carbon for photosynthesis to get the nutrients, which has allowed it to grow new leaves and get bigger. Usually plants will take in carbon dioxide but when plants die they loose all the carbon that they had stored and is released into the atmosphere.

Our plants participate in the Nitrogen cycle.  Bacteria in the soil converts the nitrogen to ammonia, the ammonia is then changed into nitrates which can then be taken up by the plants. The plants have gotten to grow bigger stems and bigger leaves which are taking to a heart shape. After the plant has absorbed the ammonium and nitrates using it for nutrients a process called ammonification happens. Bacteria in the soil will convert the nitrogen nutrients back into ammonia, from there bacteria will also convert the ammonia to nitrogen gas, this process is called denitrification. 

Post assignment #4 : Elena

Some abiotic factors that my plant depends on is water, sunlight, carbon dioxide, dirt, and nitrogen. A plant needs soil to grow in as well as get nutrients from it. Our plant needs water, sunlight, and carbon dioxide for photosynthesis, and a plant needs nitrogen for nutrients.  My plant also depends on some biotic factors.  Some of those biotic factors being other plants that compete with my plant for space, and water, bacteria which turns nitrogen into ammonia for our plant to absorb as nutrients, and bugs that might land on or even eat our plant.  

I know that my plants are engaged in competition with other plants for space in the soil, nutrients, sunlight, and water because other plants may be growing faster than mine. Or plants will start growing up for more sunlight rather than out. 

With the struggle of competition winners and losers are determined by what plants survive and grow nice and tall and healthy. And by what plants die or are stunted. Not always is it clear to see what plants “win” or “ lose”. Sometimes all the plants are genuinely similar.  Different plants grow to different standards.  It is hard to say who won or lost if you are comparing multiple species.  But in competition you can have one plant that grew taller and another plant that grew wider and spread out more.  There are different characteristics of a plant that shows that both won but in different categories. The taller one got more sunlight, and the more spread out one managed to get more water and nutrients from the soil. 

Not only do plants interact with each other, bacteria also has a relationship with plants.  In the soil the bacteria turns the nitrogen into ammonia and then into nitrates which the plant then uses for nutrients. 

In the garden there seems to be a secondary succession. There was a disturbance in the ecosystem, taking the weeds out of the area and shifting the soil. Then new life started growing from the soil.

Post Assignment #4 - Alia Latimer

There are several abiotic factors that contribute to our plants survival, and generally help it thrive. Many of these factors are aspects that make up the climate, such as the perception the plant receives as part of the water cycle. This can be received through natural means, such as rain or a river, but in our case it mostly comes through us watering our plants. Another would be the temperature, our plants being affected by how hot or cold the area is. 

One of the easiest ways I know that our plants are involved in competition is the fact that we have to weed the area fairly frequently. Before we started using the area there were lots of grass, and other volunteer plants, and even after we weeded the area, we still have to weed the area every couple days to keep other plants from sprouting in our little plot. So while our little plants may not have much competition because of our teams intervention, they still must compete to get the most water, space and sunlight.

In this sort of environment the winners and looses are determined by who gets to survive. Our plants are currently the winners, and the weeds that we have torn up are the looses. Of course it can be hard to know for sure who exactly wins, because often both organisms are injured or effected in some way. There also could be some unintended consequences, like the soil being diseased and that eventually killing all the plants that grow there, and spreading it to the others in that species.

While we can't see too much interaction, we have found evidence in the form of a worm. The worm would be These worms convert the organic material into the soil that the plant uses to grow up big and strong. There is also evidence of a predator prey relationship in the fact that we found a bite mark in one of the leaves. Obviously our little plants have been preyed on by some sort of insect, and there for has a relationship to the insect.

Since the soil still remains, there is definitely no primary secession, however there still is secondary secession at play. While there may have been no natural disaster, we did uproot the majority of the plant life that was living that area. We then brought in a new species that has been populating the area, along with some of the previous species that were inhabiting the area.

Post Assignment #3 - Alia Latimer

Over all our little seedlings haven't changed much. While it is true that their leaves have gotten longer, their stalks have gotten bigger, and just their overall size has increased there hasn't been much other change. It is important to note that the leaves have started to change in shape, and there are more leaves, that is where the changes stop. I do think that there will be more changes t occur, but currently they remain a pale green color.

In terms of the water cycle our little plants interact with it in the same way i assume most plants do. Obviously they are taking in the water that we give them and using it to grow and thrive, which then goes back into the environment through transpiration. There is also the less direct interaction of when the morning dew collects on the leaves on the plants, evaporation off later in the day, or being used by an insect or animal as a source of water. The plants also receive water on occasion from rain, which despite being scarce would have still been an interaction with the water cycle. These interactions have helped our broccoli to thrive and grow. As we saw in a previous attempt the water is essential to the growth of the plant throughout it's life, and especially in the earliest stages. Water is essential for all life and these little plants are not exception, which is why we have to make sure that they are constantly engaged in the water cycle through receiving water.

Plants as a variety have one of the most essential parts in the carbon cycle, which is recycling the carbon into oxygen. Our broccoli are responsible for taking in the carbon put out into the atmosphere by fires, human machinery, and animal respiration, and turn it back into breathable oxygen. They store up this carbon and use it for growing, only returning the carbon back to the earth through being burned, being eaten, or dying. Obviously our plants have been using the carbon to grow, since they have been getting larger slowly.

Plants again have a similar niche in the nitrogen cycle that they do in the carbon cycle. After bacteria  breaks down the nitrogen from the air into the soil, the plants use it to grow through assimilation. The nitrogen is then passed from the plants into the natural flow of energy in the food chain. So obviously as the plants live in the soil they will be taking in nitrogen, and when insects or humans eat them they will be passing it on.

Post assignment #4: Duaa Khan

The abiotic factors that affect our plant are sunlight, climate/weather, and the amount of space. Some biotic factors that affect our plants includes, parasites, competition, and predators. When visiting the garden this past week, I noticed weeds that were around our plants. Clearly, our plants did not have much space to grow to due to the competition and lack of room. Not only that, but I noticed several ants on the plants slowly eating away our leaves as it has small punctures. An example of abiotic factor is changing weather. As it begins to touch the very peak of winter, the weather has become quite chilly. Since the temperature will decrease, our plants will have to adapt to the upcoming weather.

My plant is involved with competition mainly because there are multiple weeds that grew incredibly close to my plant, as it is consuming much of the sunlight and space. As you pluck out weeds they soon regrow as they tend to reproduce rapidly. Because the weed is also consuming the sunlight and taking up the space, it is essentially negatively impacting our pants.

Through the aspect of competition, the “losers” and “winners” are chosen by the one who is successfully able to sustain its life. Sometimes however, it is not always clear as to who is winning. This is because it could become hard to differentiate the overall appearance of a plant. Seemingly, they might look just as same like they both look somewhat healthy. Not only that but, plants will adapt to the circumstances given. As the plant struggles for its life, it will try to adapt to the scenario to possibly survive.

Most plants get the nitrogen they need to grow from the soils or water in which they live. Animals get the nitrogen they need by eating plants or other animals that contain nitrogen. When organisms die, their bodies decompose bringing the nitrogen into soil on land or into ocean water. Bacteria alter the nitrogen into a form that plants are able to use. Other types of bacteria are able to change nitrogen dissolved in waterways into a form that allows it to return to the atmosphere.

In our garden, secondary succession has been taking place. This is because students decided to create a garden from the dead space on campus. With this, they added soil already to help the pants that will be planted there grow.  Before our plants, there were other various seedlings that were removed after they had died. The removal of as to make room for our plants. The garden boxes were made in an area that had soil, it just was not the ideal soil for most plants to grow and thrive. Therefore not many plants were able to thrive there until people made a small garden. This rapidly sped up the process of succession, but it still evolved from dirt to a nice garden where plants are finally able to thrive.

Post Assignment #3: Duaa Khan

During the past week, our miniature broccolis are growing healthy as three seedlings have begun to sprout. They have a short light green stem with heart-shaped leaves. On each plant, there are two leaves on them as they are continuing to be much more healthy. 

Plants contribute greatly to the water cycle because of the processes they use to absorb and release energy. Unlike animals, which get their energy from food, plants convert sunlight into usable energy through photosynthesis. Plants also absorb nutrients and water through their roots. When a plant absorbs water, it travels throughout its stems and its leaves. Needed for photosynthesis, plants cannot get the energy they need from the sun without water. During photosynthesis, some excess water evaporates from the surface of the leaves, becoming water vapor. The water vapor in the process of transpiration travels into the atmosphere and becomes part of the water cycle.

The processes of photosynthesis and respiration are the basis of the carbon cycle. In photosynthesis, plants use energy from the sun and carbon dioxide (CO2) gas from the atmosphere to create carbohydrates (sugars) and oxygen (O2). Carbohydrates are then stored in their biomass (living parts, such as leaves, stems, and roots) as plants live and grow. Stored carbohydrates can be used as energy. To use the energy, carbohydrates need to be broken down in respiration and CO2 is released back into the atmosphere. Also, plants that die and are buried may turn into fossil fuels made of carbon like coal and oil over millions of years. When humans burn fossil fuels, most carbon enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.

In the nitrogen cycle, plants receive the components of the "fixed" nitrogen using nitrates in the soil to provide the nutrients they need. Plants absorb ammonium and nitrate during the assimilation process, after which they are converted into nitrogen-containing organic molecules, such as amino acids and DNA. When nitrogen nutrients have served their purpose in plants and animals, specialized decomposing bacteria will start a process called ammonification, to convert them back into ammonia and water-soluble ammonium salts. After the nutrients are converted back into ammonia, anaerobic bacteria will convert them back into nitrogen gas, during a process called denitrification. Finally, nitrogen is released into the atmosphere again. The whole process starts over after release.

Story of the seed timeline

We first planted the seeds
Then the next couple of days the 2 control plants germinated
The germinated plants kept growing the following days
The other plants didn’t grow at all over the course of time.












https://www.quickcrop.ie/learning/plant/brocolli-calabrese