Reflection/Conclusion

Overall, the process of the lab was long, but interesting. First, the beginning of the experiment was stressful. The decision of 'how much to put' was critical. The thoughts that ran through my mind were: 'What if i put too much? What if I put too little? What if my plant dies right away?' Eventually, I made my decision, of course. I did not expect to see a result right away, but when I checked on it the container was already filled with moisture. It began with the moisture and soil rising, which then led to the physical changes in the plant. Now, despite the fact that the plant is still alive it no longer looks as healthy as it did before and its death seems near. The weaknesses of this lab were the differences in weather. For example, these past five weeks it has been a mixture of sunny and gloomy days. Another weakness is that the plant was already grown when  the experiment began. In other words, it had been under different conditions and there is a probability that it was given some plant food which helps it remain mature and healthy. This causes a defect in the experiment because it is a previous outside factor that could be controlling the plant. To get more accurate and better results, it would be safer and more accurate to begin with seeds and attempt to control a full growth of a plant. Another weakness is that despite searching information regarding the plant's living conditions, if one is suited to plant there is a chance that they might affect the results by the treatment in the plant when moving it to the container. This movement could have caused an injury that might have stunt the growth or begun its causation of wilting.Not just that, but the form in which an inexperienced planter attempted to set the materials in the container could have been improved with more knowledge regarding the situation.

Observation #5:

The Neanthebela Plant has now been in its closed container for about five weeks. Throughout the weeks, plant's physical features has changed. This week the plant's features continue developing from the past week. Fortunately the plant continues to live.

An interesting observation I made is of this leaves' veins, and quite a few more that have  had this. The center vein seems to have darkened like the color of the soil. This line goes all the way to the stem of the leaf and causes the leaf to stand out compared to the others. Attached to this is two more leaves which are also darkened in the center. A probable cause seems to be that the center, where both leaves separate, has a growing lump of dark soil (?) that has a white looking ball.

This is a different side of the plant which demonstrates some interesting new features of the plant. For one, one leaf seems to have dark spots on it. These spots seem almost as if they are near to making holes on the leaf. They look similar to burn marks. My guess is that they were done by the soil's moisture leaking through the leaf. Strangely enough, the color of the leaves also seem different. They seem to be a different shade of green, one lighter than the other. 

The moisture of the container continues on as well. However, the moisture now seems to more on one side than the rest. 

Observation #4:

These pictures were taken around 8:00pm on January 6th, 2017.
After nearly three weeks of observation the plant still seems healthy and continues to grow. However despite the plant's growth, its leaves have begun to look differently than they were initially. The soil also seems to be more dry than before

In these pictures, one can see how the leaves seemed to have changed color and some beginning to show a color of brown (probably signifying that the plant is starting to wilt). In some parts of the leaves, there seems to holes, as if they have started to tear apart. Strangely enough, one stem with leaves has begun to turn brown from the roots of it and there seems to be a white dot in the growing brownness.
As before, the moisture around the container remain as well.

Observation #3:

These observation pictures were taken on December 29, 2016 at around 10:00 pm. Since the last observation one can see that the moisture around the container continues to grow. This week the plant did not receive as much sunlight as it had been before due to the past rainy days. Interestingly however the leaves facing the house light seems to be longer than the other sides. Also, the plant appears to have been changing to an almost yellow color (some leaves not all).

Observation #2:

 
















These observations were done on  December 24, 2016 at around 11:00 am. After a week of the initial set up, the plant's leaves seems to have grown, however the leaves have grown downwards. The stem also seems to have bent in a moon-shape going downwards. The container also seems to be filled with moisture and soil seems to have evaporated to the sides of the container as one can see traces of the soil on the sides.

Research Question: Under a closed controlled condition with fifteen spoonfuls of soil and 57 milliliters of water, how will the Neanthebella Plant be affected?

Hypothesis: If the Neanthebella plant is placed under a controlled condition with only fifteen spoonfuls of soil and 57 milliliters of water, then the plant will not be able to sustain itself under those conditions as it will start wilting over time due to the limitation of resources.

Background Information

Typically, plants in an environment supply themselves by what nature brings to them. During the different change of seasons, their supplements from the environment change due to the difference in climate. For example during the summer, plants are supplied with more moisture, hot temperatures, and sunlight which would keep most plants alive; however, some plants will wilt due to the probable lack of water. During the winter season, many plants drown due to rain but others survive and grow to be healthy due to their reliance on water. In other words, these plants are given their nutrients daily and their conditions are not controlled, as the environment is the supplier and the environment tends to vary. With this, the plants are able to undergo photosynthesis, as well cellular respiration. In short, most plants live in an ecosystem that has inputs and outputs making them live in an open ecosystem. This means they receive their energy from surrounding environments and exchange their energy within the ecosystem (McCobb, 2016). Aside from an open ecosystem, there is also a closed ecosystem, which does not rely on exchange of matter with its surroundings. This usually involves one autotroph which can use its waste products to convert them into food (McCobb, 2016). In short, an open ecosystem has both outputs and inputs while a closed ecosystem has nor inputs nor outputs (Friedl).

                A mesocosm is an experimental tool used to create a small environment with controlled conditions. In other words, it is a small replication of an ecosystem. According to Matthew C.Watts and Grant R. Bigg: “Many studies use these controlled environments to examine ecosystem responses to factors such as nutrient addition and light limitation.” A mesocosm is used to observe the adaptation of an organism based on its controlled supplements. These studies help understand the needs of a plant and explain possible reasons as to their survival or deaths. This experimental tool models a closed environment: it allows light and energy to enter the environment however matter does not enter not does it leave the small contained environment. There are two forms of mesocosms: Aquatic and Terrestrial. An aquatic mesocosm is a replication of water-based environment while a terrestrial mesocosm is based on land organisms.

                In this mesocosm project, the plant that will be experimented on will be a grown Neanthebella Palm, a form of a Delray plant. The Neanthebella Palm originated from Guatemala and is known as a houseplant (indoor plant). Its normal height tends to be from 18 inches to 36 inches, some can be even taller than that. Its survival temperature is around 60 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit, therefore the plant can thrive of a variety of light conditions; However it cannot be kept under “direct sunlight.” The amount of water needed for this plant varies based on the amount of light received but he soil cannot be too wet or too dry (Delray Plants ).

Works Cited

McCobb, Melissa. “Closed Ecosystems and Mesocosms.” Biology. Nogales High School, La                   Puente, 7 Dec 2016. Print. 03 Jan 2017.

"Modelling and the monitoring of mesocosm experiments: two case studies." Modelling and               the monitoring of mesocosm experiments: two case studies. N.p., n.d. Web. 03                    Jan. 2017.

"Neanthebella Palm." Neanthebella Palm. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2017.

What Is an Ecosystem? - Definition & Explanation - Video & Lesson Transcript. (n.d.).                         Retrieved January 03, 2017, from http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-an-              ecosystem-definition- lesson- quiz.html