Radish Genetics part 2 (parental results / plant F1)

Overview

Last week, you germinated seeds from two lines of radish, one with purplish hypocotyls and one with yellow-green hypocotyls.

Today, you will accomplish two tasks for radish genetics:

  1. On the 7th day of growing your seeds, count the number of purplish hypocotyls and yellow-green hypocotyls in each dish. Enter your data into a class spreadsheet so we can analyze all data together as a class. Take a clear picture with the lids off of both parental dishes individually and with your stickers for Padlet.
  2. Start your F1 dish by wetting the paper and placing it in a bright location partially submersed in water, just as you did for the first two dishes.

Counting seedlings

Start with dish P1, which is the first parental dish (P1). For each germinated seed, decide whether the hypocotyl ("stem") between the two small cotyledons ("leaves") and radical ("root") looks more purple or yellow-green.

  • If the stem has any reddish-purple color at all, count that plant in the purple category.
  • If the stem is pale yellowish green throughout, count it in the yellow-green category.

Count the number in each category.

Open the linked Excel spreadsheet. On the spreadsheet scroll down below the yellow box (don't type in the yellow box). Find your name in the large data table. Enter the number of each color of hypocotyl for dish (P1) in row 13 of the spreadsheet in the column beneath your name.

Count the number of purplish and yellow-green hypocotyls for seedings in P2. Enter that data in row 14.

Starting F1 seedlings

You know how to start seedlings by wetting the filter paper with embedded seeds, placing it in its petri dish, and placing the petri dish standing on its edge partly submersed in a dish with about an inch of water. Complete this process for the F1 dish. Leave the F2 dish dry and save for later.


Submission of photographs and data

Students submit their photographs of P1 seedlings to Padlet. Each student has one column in the Padlet, and they will later add photos of F1 and F2 seedlings as well. This allows them to see each others' work. If a student incorrectly enters data on the shared spreadsheet, other students can visually see the error and explain it in their analysis.

Students submit their counts to a shared spreadsheet (Excel through OneDrive), and use the shared data for their analyses.