Plant physiology

Plant Physiology is one of the titles in the series of ASE Lab Books that were published in the early 1970s for the Association for Science Education by John Murray. Each title covered one or two topics and brought together the best of the teaching notes and experimental ideas from members of the association that had appeared in the ASE journal, School Science Review.

The sections of this resource and the topics are as follows.

Radiobiology
* Simple radioisotope experiments in school biology
* A method for the continuous measurement of carbon dioxide uptake during photosynthesis
* Radioactive ion uptake in plants
* The use of thorium as a tracer in plants

Photosynthesis
* The use of leaf discs and 'bicarbonate'-indicator solution for investigations on photosynthesis
* A hollow glass prism and trough
* Modifications to the Nuffield experiment showing sugar production in leaves
* A modification of the experiment to show that chlorophyll is necessary in photosynthesis, using variegated leaves
* Photosynthesis
* Sunshine recorder

Gas analysis and respiratory metabolism
* Notes on the use of J-tubes for gas analysis
* Measurement of oxygen content of gas samples
* Yeasts
* The titration of ascorbic acid
* Thin-layer chromatography and some of its applications in biology

Water relations
* An unbreakable potometer
* A simple porometer for measuring the resistance to air flow offered by the stomata of green leaves
* Stomata in the epidermis of young stems
* Investigations into the behaviour of stomata in the field
* The use of Sellotape for fixing cobalt chloride paper to leaves
* Osmotic experiments
* To obtain an angiosperm xylem system skeleton

Soils
* Experiment to show that soils are composed of particles of different sizes

Membrane permeability, ion accumulation and translocation
* Class experiments on differential permeability
* Water cultures as a class experiment
* 'Wellington' hydroponics
* A variation of the experiment on the determination of the effect of temperature on the permeability of cytoplasm
* An approach to the teaching of salt uptake in plants, and some aspects of its ecological importance

Growth, development and hormones
* An unusual monocotyledonous seed for germination studies
* A school experiment to investigate the effects of radiation on seeds
Requirement of oxygen for the germination of seeds
* Germination rate and water supply a simple experiment
* The control of elongation of plant organs
* Hydrotropism

Plant enzymes
* A simple enzyme experiment
* A simple experiment to show amylase activity
* Hydrolysis of starch by a mould