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Research Question:

Is there a significant difference between the means of the number of stomata on


the leaves of plants which live in different habitats - Sansevieria trifasciata and
Tradescantia sp.?

Raw Data:
Table of raw data illustrating number of stomata counted per 4.5mm 2 for 10
trials, on two different plants
Plant
species
Sansevier
ia
trifasciata
Tradescan
tia sp.

Number of stomata per 4.5mm2


Try 1

Try 2

Try 3

Try 4

Try 5

Try 6

Try 7

Try 8

Try 9

Try
10

73

66

69

76

70

72

65

67

72

71

237

230

240

232

236

242

235

231

238

237

Processed Data:
All readings were taken using on a 4.5mm 2 circle, I will need to convert to
stomata per cm2.
1.0mm2 = 0.01cm2
100mm2 = 1.0cm2
I will have to divide each result by 4.5, then multiply by 100 to get the reading
per cm2. For example, this is the method of calculation for Try 1 for Sansevieria
trifasciata:
Number of stomata =

73
100 = 1622
4.5

I will not include decimal places, as I did not include them for the raw data either.
Table of processed data illustrating number of stomata counted per 4.5mm 2 for
10 trials, on two different plants
Plant
species
Sansevier
ia
trifasciata

Number of stomata per cm2


Try 1

Try 2

Try 3

Try 4

Try 5

Try 6

Try 7

Try 8

Try 9

Try
10

1622

1467

1533

1689

1556

1600

1444

1489

1600

1578

Tradescan
tia sp.

5267

5111

5333

5156

5244

5378

5222

5133

5289

5267

Given that I have repeated testing 10 times and therefore have 5 different
results for each plant, I need to find the mean result for each. I will also calculate
the standard deviation from the mean number of stomata for each plant in order
to draw error bars on the graphs. Here is a sample working for calculation of
mean and standard deviation for Sansevieria trifasciata:
mean= (1622 + 1467 + 1533 + 1689 + 1556 + 1600 + 1444 + 1489 + 1600 +
1578)/10 = 7.4 = 1558
The mean will not have any decimal places, as there were no decimal places in
my raw results either.

Standard deviation () calculated using this formula


http://www.calculator.net/standard-deviation-calculator.html

, at

standard deviation () = 72
The standard deviation will not have any decimal places, as there were no
decimal places in my raw results either.
Table of processed data illustrating mean number of stomata per cm 2 and
standard deviation from mean, for two different plants
Plant
species
Sansevier
ia
trifasciata
Tradescan
tia sp.

Mean number of stomata


per cm2

Standard deviation ()
from mean

1558

72

5240

82

Table of processed data illustrating mean number of stomata per cm2 and standard deviation from mean, for two different plants
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
Mean number of stomata per cm2

1000
0

Plant species

In order to be able to conclude if there is a significant difference between the


means of the numbers of stomata of the two plants, I need to carry out a T test. I
will do this using this website: http://graphpad.com/quickcalcs/ttest2/, and the
following equations:

Where:

x1 is the mean of sample 1

s1 is the standard deviation of sample 1

n1 is the sample size of sample 1

x2 is the mean of sample 2

s2 is the standard deviation of sample 2

n2 is the sample size in sample 2 (Independent T-test)

The t test carried out was unpaired.


Degrees of freedom = 10 + 10 -2 = 18

The t value calculated was t=101.3110. Looking at the table of critical values for
T, the critical value for T at the 95% confidence limit at 18 degrees of freedom is
t=2.10.
Results from the t test calculator on Graphpad:

Conclusion:
The aim of this experiment was to investigate if there is a significant
difference between the means of the number of stomata on the leaves of plants
which live in different habitats - Sansevieria trifasciata and Tradescantia sp. I can
answer this aim using my processed data, and the t value which was calculated,
in comparison to the appropriate critical value for T.
The t value calculated was t=101.3110. Looking at the table of critical
values for T, the critical value for T at the 95% confidence limit at 18 degrees of
freedom is t=2.10. It is clear that the obtained value for t is much larger than the
critical value for T, I can calculate how many times greater it was:

101.3110
=48.24 x greater
2.10
By the criteria of the t test, this different is considered as being extremely
statistically significant, so I can conclude that there is a significant different

between the number of stomata on the leaves of plants which live in different
habitats - Sansevieria trifasciata and Tradescantia sp.
Judging by the graph, the Tradescantia sp. had a significantly greater
mean number of stomata per cm2 than the Sansevieria trifasciata, with 5240
stomata per cm2 compared to 1558 stomata per cm2. The error bars for both
plants are very small, looking at the graph. They also do not extend significantly
beyond the data points and do not get anywhere close to overlapping. This is
backed up by the fact that there were no anomalies in my raw data. All of this
demonstrates that the qualitative data which I collected was likely very accurate,
and will not have impacted my findings or the validity of my conclusions
negatively. I have done research into the habitats of these plants, and can use
this to now explain my findings.
Firstly, let me briefly explain the function of the stomata. These are pores
in the leaves of a plan which allow for gas exchange. They allow for CO 2 to enter
the leaf for use in photosynthesis, and for O 2. Stomata also allow water vapour to
escape the leaf, this process is called transpiration. Transpiration must take
place to allow for water to be drawn up by the plants vascular system. However,
it must be regulated as otherwise the plant will dry out (Allott).
According to the British Royal Horticultural Society, Sansevieria trifasciata,
also known as Mother in Laws tongue, is a succulent perennial forming a
clump of erect, sword-shaped deep green leaves with pale green transverse
bands (RHS). In the context of botany, the term succulent refers to a plant
which has leaves and tissues adapted to storing water, and the term perennial
refers to a plant which is lives for several years (Merriam-Webster). Succulent is
of particular importance when explaining why this plant had a much lower mean
number of stomata per cm2 than the Tradescantia sp. The reason that this plant
is adapted to store water is because it is native to warm climates such as those
found in India, Indonesia and Africa, and the ideal temperatures for this plant are
quite warm: 21 to 32C. In these warm climates there are often very dry periods
when the plant will not receive much water, and the light intensity is high, which
will result in a greater rate of transpiration from the stomata. The plant therefore
stores water, so that it can grow in these climates without drying up
(Sansevieria).
In order for Sansevieria trifasciata to be able to store water, it needs to
minimize its transpiration rate by reducing water loss from the leaf. Therefore,
there are a low mean number of stomata per unit area on the leaf (respective to
the number on Tradescantia sp.). The low number of stomata also corresponds to
the shape of the leaves; they are vertical, so there is no bottom and top.
Therefore, there is not a side of the leaf which is shielded more from the sun, so
there are stomata to prevent water loss due to the sun shining on the stomata.
As for the Tradescantia sp., it is a trailing plant with small flat leaves. It
likes warm temperatures, however not as warm as the Sansevieria trifasciata (it
can tolerate temperatures down to 12C and ideally not higher than 20C, in
cooler conditions it grows more slowly) (Tradescantia). The genus Tradescantia is

found in many climates around the world, and the particular variety I used
(Tradescantia Yellow Hill) was grown specifically for keeping as a houseplant
(Tuinkrant).
All of this information backs up why this plant had a much greater number
of stomata than the other. As a houseplant growing at lower temperatures, it is
adapted to have a low light intensity shining on its leaves, and will have no need
to store water as it is watered regularly. There are therefore a great number of
stomata to allow for a greater rate of transpiration than the other plant, without
the risk of drying up because of high light intensity. The fact that the leaves are
horizontal also supports why there are a greater number of stomata, as the
stomata are not directly exposed from the light shining on the leaves from above
which would cause excess transpiration.
The research question of this experiment was Is there a significant
difference between the means of the number of stomata on the leaves of plants
which live in different habitats - Sansevieria trifasciata and Tradescantia sp.? I
have been able to effectively answer this question, as I have been able to
conclude that there is a significant difference between the means of the number
of stomata on the leaves of plants which live in different habitats, and I have
been able to discuss why was this was true in the case of these two plants in
particular.
To further extend this investigation based upon the conclusion, I could look
at investigating different plants to see if indeed such findings can be found
between all plants which live in different habitats. I could also use a potometer to
calculate transpiration rate of the plants as well ask counting stomata, to
determine if the transpiration rate is proportional to the number of stomata (or if
not what other relationship do they have). I could also look at different species of
the same genus, such as different Tradescantia, and determine if the number of
stomata on their leaves are significantly different. This would allow me to discuss
the extent to which plants in the same genus share similar traits.

Evaluation:
I took 10 samples from each plant, taken from different leaves, in the
process of collecting my raw data. There were no obvious anomalies in any of my
data, so I can be quite certain about the correlation between the climate and the
number of stomata on the leaves. In order words, the trend in my results was
very clear. This is backed up by the very small error bars on my graph (and
corresponding small standard deviations). It was also backed up by the t test,
which concluded that the results were very significantly different between the
two plants, which supported my conclusion.
The fact that I only tested two plants enabled me to answer the research
question in the case of these two plants only, however I do not know if this is the
case for all other plants as well. In order to check if my conclusion is valid for all

plants which are suited for different habitats, I would have to repeat this
experiment with many more plants. Only after I had obtained a positive
conclusion for all these plants (i.e. that habitat significantly impacts number of
stomata), would I be able to answer the research question with more certainty
for all plants.
The way in which I measured the number of stomata on the leaves of both
plants allowed me to produce very valid results, as I took photographs of each
magnified image and manually marked off the stomata on each image so that I
counted correctly. I chose to count partial stomata around the edges, and made
sure that I did this for all repeats. Maybe this was not the most accurate way to
do this, as this may not have given an accurate number of whole stomata in the
magnified image. I could have improved this part of my method by counting the
partial stomata and dividing the number by two, to get a more accurate number
of whole stomata in the magnified image. However, this will not have impacted
my results greatly as there was such as significant difference in the numbers of
stomata between the two plants.
I also counted stomata on the lowest possible magnification, which will
have helped to average the numbers of stomata which may be clustered
together, so the overall number of stomata I counted for each repeat ended up
being very similar. This will no doubt have contributed to the validity of my
results.
An improvement I may consider making would be to take samples from a
number of different plants of each type, as perhaps the plants that I used may
differ slightly from the norm number of stomata of plants of that species.

Bibliography
Allott, Andrew. Plant Biology. Biology: For the IB Diploma. N.p.: n.p., n.d. 111.
Print.
"Independent T-test." Biology for Life. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.biologyforlife.com/t-test.html>.
Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.merriam-webster.com/>.
"Plants & Flowers." Tradescantia. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.plantsrescue.com/?s=tradescantia>.
RHS. "Sansevieria Trifasciata." RHS. The Royal Horticultural Society, n.d. Web. 26
Apr. 2015. <https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rhs.org.uk%2FPlants%2F16430%2FMother-inlaw-s-tongue%2FDetails>.
"Sansevieria Trifasciata Laurentii." Plants & Flowers. N.p., 12 June 2013. Web. 26
Apr. 2015. <http://www.plantsrescue.com/sansevieria-trifasciata-laurentii/>.

"Standard Deviation Calculator." Calculator. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.


<http://www.calculator.net/standard-deviation-calculator.html>.
"T Test Calculator." GraphPad. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.
<http://graphpad.com/quickcalcs/ttest2/>.
Tuinkrant. "Tradescantias Zijn Verkrijgbaar in Verrassend Rijke
Kleurschakeringen." Tuinkrant. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.tuinkrant.com/artikel/tradescantia-s-zijn-verkrijgbaar-verrassendrijke-kleurschakeringen>.

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