You will need:
- Different coloured food dyes e.g. red, yellow, green and blue
- Flowering plants with white petals e.g. Carnations
- Scissors
- Running water
- Four cups of water. (you may want to use a glass jar as it will be heavier and less likely to tip over).
Mix each cup of water with a strong solution of food dye.
With an adult, cut the stems of each flower under running water.
Place a cut flower stem in each of the coloured liquids
Which colour shows through the petals the best?
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- Learn about the parts of a flower
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Why Does This Happen
When leaves and petals lose water to the air, the water must be replaced. Eventually, the coloured liquid must be pulled through the stems to replace the lost water being lost, colouring the leaf tips and flower petals. This process is ‘transpiration’.
To transport liquid through the place, plant stems have bundles of tubes inside them called ‘vascular bundles’. Vascular bundles that carry water from the roots to the leaves are called xylem. It was those vascular bundles that were transporting the coloured water up the flower stem. Try splitting the stem in the middle and placing the ‘two stems’ in different coloured solutions.
Variables to test
- Vary the temperature of the dyes
- Compare different flowers in the same dye
- Try this on hot vs cold days
- Can you make a flower with two colours or more?
Classroom activity sheets for this experiment
Create, reflect & extend!
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