Blog Post #3

Our plant is so far doing very well, we took away the surrounding weeds, and it is making marked growth.  We are very proud of it.

As water is very important to plants, and all living things for that matter, it would make sense that our Brassica Oleracea participate in the water cycle.  When the water in the atmosphere precipitates, it falls to the earth in the form of rain, snow, or hail.  But, where we live, it is mostly rain.  The rain falls on our plant, and the dirt that the plant is in.  The plants roots are in the dirt and they absorb the moisture in the ground.  The plant then uses this water in photosynthesis.  The water also helps to keep the plant cool.  The plant "sweats" when water moisture comes from the under side of its leaves in a process called transpiration.  The water moisture goes back into the atmosphere.  The water that the plant takes in, helps to keep it sustained which is why it is more lush, greener, bigger, and not dead.

Carbon is a necessity in plants and it is no wonder that they are an important part of the carbon cycle.  They have the astounding ability to absorb carbon from the air.  Carbon is a very important part in photosynthesis.  When animals eat plants, they get some carbon that was in the plant.  That carbon in the form of co2 is breathed out by the animal into the air or is absorbed into the ground when it died.  If our plants did not use carbon then they would not be able to photosynthesize.  So, they would not be able to make food for themselves.  Without he carbon in photosynthesis our plants would not be able to survive.

The plant participates in the nitrogen cycle because it takes in nitrates and emits ammonia, the ammonia later gets changed back into nitrogen.  The plant absorbing absorbing nitrates and emmiting ammonia is called assimilation.