Ocimum Basilicum Laboratory Report - Essay Example

Introduction Basil is a small plant and can be grown in the pot. It is treasured for its many purposes such as, ornaments, fragrance and its medicinal value. It is very simple to grow in the optimum conditions of its growth. It germinates from a seed and takes a period of one year to mature. It is mostly used in cuisines, such as Italian, dental and oral products. It is believed to originate from the Asian content. It is grown in Morocco, Indonesia, California, Egypt, and southern Europe. It takes one year to fully mature.

It has green stems and it is leafy. A mature Basil plant has a height of 2-3 ft. It is popularly used as a flavour. It has a spicy and peppery flavour compounded by mint and cover. The flavour is best before flowering .Basil is used in laboratory experiments to investigate many variables such as soil nutrients, soil acidity water, phototropism, gravitropism, and allelopathy (Pay Lucy and Mark 2004). The objective of research was to determine whether, the nutrients in different soils had an effect on the growth of Basil plant.

In this experiment, three samples of soil were used. These samples of soils comprised of sand soil (pH 7.5), Black soil (pH 6.0), and Potting soil (6.5). The period of the study was fourteen days. The experiment used ocimum basilicum, which was fourteen inch in height. These plants were purchased at a Home Depot. The researched used three terra cotta pots. Ocimum basilicum was placed in each pot. The plants were watered each day with the same amount of distilled water (118.29Ml). The three pots were exposed to the same amount of light in the balcony.

This ensured that they had the same amount of sunlight. The height of the plants was measured after every seventh day of the fourteen experiment period. A control set of experiment was also set, exposed to the same environmental condition but of water. Their heights were also measured and compared with originals. The purpose of the study was to determine whether different soils minerals contributed to growth of basil plants. The experiment hypothesized that typical potting soil will outperform black soil and sand soil by increasing the growth speed of the Ocimum basilicum by at least 20%.

Materials and Methods Acquirement and Management Ocimum basilicum takes one year to mature. It has about 2-3 ft. Basil has two colors of flowers. They are either purple or white flowers. Ocimum bacilicum is leafy and with free branches. It is mostly preferred for fragrances and color. This plant has an optimum growth in a soil with good drainage and sufficient amounts of water. Frost affects Ocimum basicum. It is easy to propagate and can be grown in pots and containers. Terra cotta pots These are special pots that are frost free.

They are mostly used in laboratory experiments to grow plants fro experiments. Distilled water. It is water that is purified through a distillation process. It is used in the laboratories for experiments. It has almost pH7.0. Samples of sand, Miracle Grow Potting, and Black soil Miracle Grow potting soil is a combination of different soils. The principle ingredients include peat moss, decayed plant materials, sand, and partite. Black soils are very nutrient rich soils while sand have poor drainage and low water retention capacity.

This experiment used three basil plants. The three plants were 14 inch tall each. They were purchased fro a Home Depot. They were then kept in different terra cotta pots. The