Problem: Where do the leaves get their colors? What will happen when you place spinach, nail polish remover, and a piece of coffee filter in a glass?.
Hypothesis: I think that the coffee filter will turn green from the color of the spinach leaves:.
Materials:.
4-5 Spinach leaves 1 drinking glass.
Spoon Nail polish remover.
Coffee filter Scissors.
.
Procedure:.
1. Tear the leaves into small pieces.
2. Place the pieces into the bottom of the glass and mash them together with a spoon.
3. Add several teaspoons of nail polish remover to the leaf mush. Wait until the leaves settle at the bottom of the nail polish remover. If the remover does not cover all the leaves, add enough so that they are totally covered.
4. Cut a rectangle from the coffee filter. It should be slightly narrower then the glass.
5. Leave the rectangle on the side of the glass and make sure the coffee filter is not touching the leaves.
6. Let the glass sit for several hours.
7. Notice what happens.
Data: Describe what you see happening to the coffee filter.
The coffee filter contains the colors green and yellow starting from the bottom and going up. The spinach leaves are not as green as they used to be. Some of the leaves are white.
Conclusion: As time passed on many colors worked their way up to the coffee filter. The green that was seen came from the chemical that makes leaves green-chlorophyll. There are also other colors like yellow and a faint orange color. These came from different chemicals that are also found in green leaves.
Supporting Scientific Information.
During the spring and summer, photosynthesis produces so much chlorophyll you can only see the green color in the leaves. But as the days get shorter, less chlorophyll is produced and the green fades away so that you can finally see the other colors. When the green is gone, the leaf is not far from falling to the ground.
Chlorophyll: The chemical in plants that makes their leaves green.