Fragmentation – a type of asexual reproduction – happens when a new plant develops from cuttings or pieces taken from the original plant. To demonstrate this, pour water into a one-liter jar. From a pot of geranium, cut and remove a stem or two. Next, place two stems into each jar with the cut ends facing down. Leave them in the sunlight and record observations over the next 10 to 14 days. Small roots will grow from the stem's end. For added effect, you can place the stems back into potting soil.
With a simple hammer, you can extract pigments from plants. For this project, you can use any flowers, such as lobelia or marigolds, but avoid white flowers and those that are too thick.
On a sturdy surface, put a clipboard on a stack of newspapers, placing a paper towel on top, followed with a piece of white paper. Arrange the flowers on the white paper and secure with adhesive tape; cover them with another paper towel. Next, gently hammer the flowers under the paper towel, allowing them to “bleed” through. Turn the white paper over and iron under warm temperature to set the pigment into the paper. Finally, gently remove the tape and flowers. Doing this with different flowers can provide a variety of colors and can also allow the plant’s structures – such as the stamen and pistil – to show up on the newly-created artwork.
Showing plant growth can be a slow and tedious process; however, adding modern-day equipment to the experiment can make it a more eventful process. To start, place radish seeds within a clear, rectangular aquarium filled with garden soil, placing most of the seeds toward the side to be easily seen through the glass. Position a digital camera in front of the aquarium and take one picture. For the upcoming days, set it to take a frame-shot every 15 minutes. Do this for around 10 days. To do this experiment properly, you’ll also need light on your plants, which means you’ll want to add a fluorescent lamp to the mix. Set a timer, keeping it on for 18 hours a day. At the end of the 10 days, compile the snapshots together to show a good, fast-paced growth chart of the plant.
Believe it or not, you can actually extract visible DNA strands from simple vegetables. To start, add around half a cup of split peas in a blender (although other vegetables will substitute). Add one cup of cold water and 1/8 teaspoon of table salt. Blend all of this together for around 15 to 20 seconds. Strain the mixture, adding two tablespoons of liquid detergent into it. Let it stand for up to 10 minutes, then pour a small amount (a couple of tablespoons) into test tubes. Add a small pinch of meat tenderizer or pineapple juice, stirring them together. Tilting the test tube, add 70% to 90% ethyl alcohol until it forms a layer on top of the mixture (about the equivalent of the pea mixture). Find the newly-formed white clumps where the alcohol and layer of water meet. This area will be your DNA mixture. Use a straw to collect your sample. The stringy DNA mixture stays intact because of the salty mixture combining with the presence of alcohol.