The topic which I’m studying is acid rain’s effect on fungi. My first variable, the independent one, is acid rain. Acid rain is a form of precipitation containing a large concentration of sulfuric and nitric acids. Acid rain is also defined by its level of pH which is lower then neutral. pH is the negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration in kilograms per cubic meter. Neutral pH level is 7 and on a pH scale, lower pH level than neutral makes a substance acidic, thus giving the name acid rain. The pollutants that contaminate rain making it into acid rain are sulfur (sulfuric), nitrogen (nitric) and carbon. There are many contributors to these gases getting into and then contaminating our rain, major contributors to the contamination are smoke stacks. Smoke stacks burn coal and oil, releasing high amounts of fossil fuels which mix with the water vapor to create the sulfuric and nitric acids which are so contaminating, making acid rain. Cars also contribute as the carbon dioxide emissions are also released into the atmosphere. And just using electricity at home contributes since a lot of our energy comes from burning coal which adds to the sulfur dioxide.
Many things are affected by acid rain, insects, human beings, fish, all sorts of animals; it can even affect statues made of marble and limestone. But one of the most important things acid rain affects is soil. Almost every living thing depends upon, or is affected by, the quality of soil, and when there is enough acid rain, low pH build up, soil can be badly affected. Acid rain affects soil by taking necessary nutrients out of the soil and also it dissolves some aluminum out of the soil which can actually negatively affect the organisms in the soil. The reason why so many things are affected by acid rain is because of its low pH levels. Most things are not used to the low levels and so they can be badly broken down by low levels of pH (“acid rain”, Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010).
One of the most extensive kingdoms of life is the fungi kingdom. The fungi kingdom was originally non existent since fungi used to be considered a type of plant. But it has been found that fungi is non-photosynthetic, meaning it does not self-produce using photosynthesis like plants. It is also separate from the plant kingdom because of its different cell wall structure. The cell walls of fungi are mainly made of chitin, not cellulose like plants’ cell walls. Another difference between fungi and plants is that fungi develop straight from spores without any stage of being an embryo. Many forms of fungi are decomposers. There are many forms of fungi with there different tasks and different things they take part in our environment. They are a huge part of the decomposition of soil and fresh water. Some fungi enhance the growing of many plants, including many forest trees, by gathering certain nutrients for the roots of the plant. Some fungi are harmful in the form of disease and poison to plants and animals, while others can serve as antibiotics. Fungi such as yeast are used for fermentation in brewing of commercial alcohol. Even many cheeses are only tasty because of the moldy growth that gets them to be that way (Bailey, Jill 2003).
The fungi kingdom has about 100,000 species, from the honey mushroom that spans for 2,000 acres underground in Oregon, to the mold that forms from left over bread, even the yeast that turns juice into wine. The fungi kingdom has an extremely vast range of size, color, harm, smell, taste, and texture. Most of the fungus is extremely important to our ecosystem and environment. The whole fungi kingdom consists of so many different forms of fungi with different ways of getting nutrients. Some, such as mold and decomposers, get there nutrients by breaking down expired substances such as bread and dead animals. Other mushrooms take nutrients from the ground such as plants, but it’s known that almost all fungi requires some moisture for proper growth. For a long time mushrooms have been used as a form of food for various organisms and if not for fungi nothing on earth would have ever decomposed, decomposition is extremely important to our environment. All in all fungus play a huge part in our ecosystem and are a necessity to existence (“fungus”, Encyclopædia Britannica, 2010) .
The specific fungi I’m using is the oyster mushroom. An oyster mushroom in the wild can often be found on the stump or bark of a tree, sticking off of it in a way that makes it look like an oyster, hence the name. Oyster mushrooms start growth by forming a mycelium which forms bumps which eventually turn into mushrooms. Oyster mushrooms are sturdy, hard to kill, mushrooms which have low requirments, something which will neutralize the spores and enough moisture.
Since fungus is so important to our ecosystem, and the amount of acid rain in our atmosphere is increasing, I believe it’s extremely important to study acid rain’s affect on fungi. If acid rain is so harmful to plants and so many other organisms I assume it will do the same to fungi, specifically mushrooms, specifically the Enokitake mushroom (Flammulina velutipes). That is why my hypothesis is: If fungus is watered regularly with acid rain then its growth and fruiting will be stunted.
I plan on testing how acid rain is going to affect oyster mushrooms by simply watering the different pots of oyster mushrooms with different pHs of acid as you would water a plant everyday and seeing how the acid is affecting the growth and fruiting of the mushrooms.
Experimental Design (Data Table [not filled out] included):
Jack Szumski-Experimental Design
My experimental question is: What is acid rain’s affect on fungi?
If fungi is watered with acidic water rather than with water of a neutral ph than its rate of growth and fruiting will decrease.
MATERIALS:
· 4 Buckets
· 4 Trays
· 4 Beakers
· 8 Popsicle sticks
· 4 Squares of plastic wrap with the dimensions of at least 1’ by 1’
· 4 Beakers
· 200ml of 2.5pH acid
· 200ml of 4pH acid
· 200ml of 5pH acid
· 200ml of 7pH (neutral) water
· Goggles
· Gloves
· Tape
· Ruler
· Laptop/pencil and paper
In this experiment the independent variable is acid rain.
· The control in this experiment
are the oyster mushrooms being watered with neutral pH 7 water
The dependent variable in this experiment are the oyster mushrooms.
The following is the procedure for this experiment:
1. Set up four buckets of oyster mushroom spores as directed in the instructions received with the spores.
2. Place two popsicle sticks into the soil on either side of the bucket and place plastic wrap on top of the sticks as to create a sort-of tent over the bucket.
3. Fill four beakers with 200 ml of water; one with 2.5 pH water, one with 4 pH water, one with 5 pH water, and one with neutral (7pH) water.
4. Label each bucket and label each beaker corresponding to the bucket you will water it with.
5. Before you water the buckets or handle the acid, put on goggles and gloves.
6. Water each bucket everyday and record observations of how each bucket is being affected and/or record the length and width of each mushroom in the bucket and record how many mushrooms are in the bucket.
7. When the mushrooms get to the point where the plastic wrap is not a high enough tent, create new larger tents using a garbage bag, which involves cutting holes in the bag for ventilation.
DATA TABLE:
| Date | 50 ml of pH of water | Observations | Height |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
Data Table (filled out):
| Date | 50 ml of pH of water | Observations | Height |
| 2/9 | 2.5 | Growths of white mold on edges | - |
| | 7 | Growth of white mold on one edge of bucket | - |
| | 4 | Growths of white mold on some edges | - |
| | 5 | Growths of white mold on edges | - |
| 2/16 | 2.5 | Some green growths and white | - |
| | 7 | White growths around edges and tiny bit of green | - |
| | 4 | White growth covering basically all of surface | - |
| | 5 | White growth covering surface | - |
| 2/17 | 2.5 | White growths around edges and small amount of green in edges | - |
| | 7 | White around edges and yellowish mold a bit in the middle with brown specks | - |
| | 4 | White stiff-like mold on whole surface except for few spots | - |
| | 5 | White stiff-like mold on whole surface | - |
| 2/18 | 2.5 | Green on inside circle of white all around edge | - |
| | 7 | Some neon green mold, lots of yellow mold and brown specks. White mold around edges | - |
| | 4 | = | - |
| | 5 | = | - |
| 2/19 | 2.5 | Some green, white all around edge but soil in the middle. | - |
| | 7 | = | - |
| | 4 | = | - |
| | 5 | All white on surface but tiny bit of yellow. | - |
| 3/2 | 2.5 | Thin ring around edges of white mycelium, bumps shoring starting of growth. | - |
| | 7 | Yellowish white mold around edges soil and green mold in middle and some white mold in middle. | - |
| | 4 | 4 clumps of mushrooms, three tiny groups, the mushrooms are brown and droopy, they were healthy looking | Tallest about 2.5cm |
| | 5 | White mycelium on whole surface with bumps, slightly yellowish now. | - |
| 3/3 | 2.5 | Small amount of white around edges, mostly soil, some green around edges. | - |
| | 7 | Green mold in middle, not a lot, whitish yellowish bumpy mold around edges. | - |
| | 4 | Yellowish white mycelium on whole surface. 3 large, 3-4 small clumps of mushrooms. Mushrooms are drooping even more. | Tallest 2.5 cm |
| | 5 | Less white mycelium on surface. More streaks of soil. No mushrooms yet. | - |
| 3/4 | 2.5 | Mold not looking too good, getting better | - |
| | 7 | Mold not improving | - |
| | 4 | Mushrooms are now dying | Highest about 2.5 cm |
| | 5 | More brown | - |
| 3/10 | 2.5 | Thin white ring around edges thin green ring on inner edge, soil in the middle | - |
| | 7 | Two small clumps of mushrooms | 3.5 tallest |
| | 4 | Tall groups of mushrooms, about two. Some small groups of mushrooms. | 5 cm tall on tallest, 2 cm wide on cap of widest |
| | 5 | One group six mushrooms | 1 cm tall highest |
| 3/11 | 2.5 | Mostly soil, tiny bit of green and white around edges. | - |
| | 7 | Mushrooms are getting bigger, two clumps. Soil and green around them though | 3 cm tallest |
| | 4 | Mushrooms are now smaller and are beginning to die since I began to water them again. | Tallest 3.5 cm, widest 1 cm |
| | 5 | One small clump of no capped mushrooms, dried out | Tallest .5 cm |
Jack Szumski
No comments:
Post a Comment