Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

19 mm
17 mm
20 mm
Lary 26 mm
Mary 18 mm
Tom
500 Krad
17 mm
Figure 1. Day 5 Observation of Plants

Number of
Leaves
2
2
2
Lary 2
Mary 2
2

Plant Color

Number of
Leaves
2
2
2
Lary 2
Mary 2
2

Plant Color

Plant Color

Shade
Shade
Shade
Shade

6
5
5
5

Shade 7

Figure 2. Day 9 Observation of Plants

Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

47 mm
39 mm
32 mm
Lary 50 mm
Mary 39 mm
Tom
500 Krad
20 mm
Figure 3. Day 11 Observation of Plants
Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

50 mm
36 mm
47 mm
Lary 61 mm
Mary 42 mm

Number of
Leaves
4
3
5
Lary 3
Mary 4

Sandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom

50 Krad
150 Krad
150 Krad
500 Krad
500 Krad

18 mm
10 mm
9 mm
5 mm
18 mm

2
2
2
2
2

Nom Nom
500 Krad
8 mm
Figure 4. Day 12 Observation of Plants
Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and

Control
Control
Control
Control

50 mm
38 mm
56 mm
Lary 67

Number of
Leaves
4
3
6
Lary 3

2
Number of
Buds
2
4
8
Lary 4

Shade
Shade
Shade
Shade

6
6
5
5

Shade 7

Shade 7
Shade 7
Shade 7
Lary Shade 6
Mary Shade
8
Shade 10
Shade 10
Shade 9
Shade 5
Shade 8
(yellow border
around edge
of leaves)
Shade 7
Plant Color
Shade 7
Shade 6
Shade 7
Lary

Mary

Sandy
Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom

Nom Nom

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

500
Krad

mm
Mary 43
mm
18 mm

Mary - 4

Mary - 2

Shade 5
Mary
Shade 7
Shade 9

6 mm

Shade 9

11 mm

Shade 6

9 mm

Shade 8

9 mm

Shade 5/6

19 mm

10 mm

Shade 7
(Pink, Red,
Yellow
border)
Yellow

Figure 5. Day 15 Observation of Plants

Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

Sandy

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

79 mm
56 mm
115 mm
Lary 94
mm
Mary 65
mm
22 mm

Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom

Nom Nom

500

Number of
Leaves
5
4
5
Lary 4
Mary 4

Number of
Buds
6
5
17
Lary 3
Mary - 2

Plant Color

Shade 7
Shade 6
Shade 8
Lary
Shade 6
Mary
Shade 5
Shade 8

7 mm

Shade 9

13 mm

Shade 4/5

10 mm

Shade 8

10 mm

Shade 6

20 mm

10 mm

Shade 7
(Pink, Red,
Yellow
border)
Yellow

Krad
Figure 6. Day 16 Observation of Plants
Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

Sandy

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

90 mm
60 mm
115 mm
Lary 100
mm
Mary 72
mm
30 mm

Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom

Nom Nom

500
Krad

Number of
Leaves
5
4
6
Lary 3
Mary - 4

Number of
Buds
6
5
17
Lary 3
Mary - 2

Plant Color

Shade 7
Shade 5
Shade 6
Lary
Shade 4
Mary
Shade 4
Shade 8

9 mm

Shade 11

14 mm

Shade 2

11 mm

Shade 11

9 mm

Shade 5

21 mm

12 mm

Shade 5
(Pink, Red,
Yellow
border)
Yellow

Figure 7. Day 17 Observation of Plants

Name
Type
Height
Number of
Leaves
Jerry
Control 105 mm
5
Terry
Control 65 mm
4
Kerry
Control 150 mm
6
Lary and
Control Lary 100
Lary 4
Mary
mm
Mary 3
Mary 75 mm

Number
of Buds
9
5
17
Lary 3
Mary 2

Sandy
Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

36 mm

Shade 7
Shade 6
Shade 8
Lary
Shade 6
Mary
Shade 5
Shade 8

10 mm

Shade 9

16 mm

Shade 4/5

13 mm

Shade 8

3 mm

Shade 6

21 mm

Shade 7
(Pink, Red,
Yellow
border)
Yellow

Nom Nom

500
12 mm
2
Krad
Figure 8. Day 18 Observation of Plants
Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

Sandy

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad

110 mm
65 mm
153 mm
Lary 100
mm
Mary 80
mm
40 mm

Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum

Plant Color

Number of
Leaves
5
4
6
Lary 3
Mary - 4

Number of
Buds
11
5
17
Lary 3
Mary 2

Plant Color

Shade 4
Shade 2
Shade 4
Lary
Shade 2
Mary
Shade 2
Shade 8

10 mm

Shade 10

10 mm

Yellow

13 mm

Shade 3

3 mm

Yellow

Tom

500
Krad

22 mm

Nom Nom

500
12 mm
2
Krad
Figure 9. Day 19 Observation of Plants
Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

Sandy

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad

120 mm
65 mm
160 mm
Lary 100
mm
Mary 81
mm
45 mm

Mandy
Ben
Ken

Number of
Leaves
5
4
6
Lary 3
Mary - 4

Number
of Buds
10
5
17
Lary 2
Mary - 2

Shade 4
Shade 4
Shade 4
Lary
Shade 3
Mary
Shade 4
Shade 8

11 mm

Shade 10

10 mm

13 mm

Yellow/
Brown
Shade 2
(Purple
border)
Yellow

Shade 4

Yellow

Braum

500
3 mm
2
Krad
Tom
500
22 mm
2
Krad
Nom Nom
500
12 mm
2
Krad
Figure 10. Day 22 Observation of Plants
Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

Sandy

50
Krad
50
Krad
150

125 mm
91 mm
170 mm
Lary 100
mm
Mary 81
mm
60 mm

Mandy
Ben

Shade 4
(Purple
border)
Yellow

Plant Color

Number of
Leaves
5
4
6
Lary 3
Mary - 4

Number of
Buds
10
2
17
Lary 2
Mary 2

Plant Color

Shade 4
Shade 9
Shade 4
Lary
Shade 2
Mary
Shade 3
Shade 5

11 mm

Shade 6

10 mm

Brown

Ken
Braum
Tom

Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

13 mm

Brown

3 mm

Brown

22 mm

Shade 4
(Purple
border)
Brown

Nom Nom

500
12 mm
2
Krad
Figure 11. Day 2 Observation of Plants

Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

Number of
Buds
6
0
17
Lary 0
Mary 0

Sandy

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

125 mm
94 mm
175 mm
Lary 100
mm
Mary 85
mm
60 mm

Number of
Leaves
5
3
6
Lary 3
Mary - 4

Shade 5
Shade 4
Shade 4
Lary
Shade 3
Mary
Shade 4
Shade 4

12 mm

Shade 3

10 mm

Brown

13 mm

Brown

3 mm

Brown

22 mm

Shade 4
(Purple
border)
Brown

Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom

Nom Nom

500
12 mm
2
Krad
Figure 12. Day 24 Observation of Plants

Name

Type

Height

Jerry
Terry
Kerry
Lary and
Mary

Control
Control
Control
Control

129 mm
97 mm
178 mm
Lary 100
mm
Mary 85
mm

Number of
Buds
8
0
8
Lary 0
Mary 0

Number of
Leaves
5
3
6
Lary 3
Mary - 4

Plant Color

Plant Color
Shade 5
Shade 6
Shade 6
Lary
Shade 3
Mary
Shade 4

Sandy
Mandy
Ben
Ken
Braum
Tom
Nom Nom

50
Krad
50
Krad
150
Krad
150
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad
500
Krad

64 mm

Shade 4

13 mm

Shade 3

10 mm

Brown

13 mm

Brown

3 mm

Brown

22 mm

12 mm

Brown/Purpl
e
Brown

ABSTRACT
People need food to survive. The more people, the more food is needed to
maintain the population. With various factors affecting the growth of crops, many
people are uneasy about putting food on the table. Because of this, there has been
a copious amount of people who demand that crops be produced more efficiently
and more frequently. The Brassica Rapa is a mutated plant that originated from an
experimental plant that was thought to be able to improve disease resistance
among cruciferous plants. The Brassica Rapa is also commonly known as the
Wisconsin Fast Plant. This is because the life cycle of the plant had been reduced
from six months to five weeks. A certain team of 4 students proceeded to observe
the growth of irradiated Brassica Rapa. They procured seeds from Carolina
Biological. They gave Brassica Rapa seeds radiation ranging from 50 Krad, 150
Krad, 500 Krad, and 4000 Krad. To ensure the accuracy of these results, the team
planted the seeds alongside each other and treated each seed equally. Through the

use of measurements and observations, the team concluded that the higher the
radiation of the seed, the less chance of survival there was.
(http://www.fastplants.org/about/history.php)

INTRODUCTION
The Brassica Rapa or otherwise referred to as the Wisconsin Fast Plant was bred by
Doctor Paul Williams to be used as a research tool that could be used to improve disease
resistance in cruciferous vegetables. Cruciferous vegetables are nothing more than vegetables of
the Brassicaceae family. These Brassicaceae are widely known for their cultivation, many
genera, species, and food production. Some of these foods are: cauliflower, cabbage, cress, bok
choy, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. Originally, the Brassica Rapa took 6 months to complete its
life cycle. But, under certain ideal conditions (such as being exposed to constant light and
receiving ample amounts of water and nutrition), these Brassica Rapa plants will grow and
produce seeds/become harvestable at only 40 days. The Brassica Rapa proved to be quicker and
also held accurate results of what would happen to various cruciferous plants. By spending
approximately 20 years in his lab experimenting, raising, and selecting, Dr. Williams was able to
shorten the life span of cruciferous plants from 60 months to 5 weeks.
(http://www.fastplants.org/about/history.php)

To truly understand the reasons behind the experiment, one must first understand
the Brassica Rapa itself and know its life cycle. Below is a list of what stages the
plant is in at what time.

Day 1-2 After the initial planting and watering, the seed will being to germinate. While
germinating, the seed absorbs the water until the coat of the seed cracks off.
Day 3 The stem of the plant, which is also known as the hypocotyl, will arise from the soil
and bring the seed leaves along with it.
Day 4 From the surface of the soil and below, the roots grow downward, allowing it to anchor
the plant and supporting it. From the surface of the soil and above, the plant elongates, growing
upwards against gravity and towards its light source.
Day 5-8 - True leaves and stems grow at the shot of the plant where apical meristem occurs. In
the soil, the roots and root hairs absorb nutrients from the soil and transport it to the rest of the
plant.
Day 9-13 flower buds start to form at the shots of where the meristem tissue is.
Day 14-17 Flowers start to bloom. You will see flowers forming from the buds. If you
pollenate the flowers by transferring pollen from one plant to another, the pollen that lands on the
tip of the flowers pistil, a tube will form that will transfer the pollen (sperm) into the ovule
where the ova is at. Once the egg and pollen come in contact, it will become fertilized.
Day 18-20 the fertilized egg inside of the flowers ovule will become the seeds of the
embryo. The ovary of the plant will become the fruit and will encase the seed inside of it.

 Day21-40 The flower petals begin to wilt steadily and fall off. There is a new seed now and
just like how the seed was at the beginning, it will have a seed coat and an embryo inside of it.
Until the seed reaches a warm and moist environment, germination will not occur again, and the
cycle has ended. (http://www.fastplants.org/life_cycle/)

This is next
Remember to look at victorias outline
Im really tired right now and its 3:05
Remember. This isnt that hard. You can do this. its only a couple more paragraphs for the intro
and then you just say what to do. Please. I need you to stop procrastinating and finish this once
and for all. I believe in you. ITS POSSIBLE AND YOU CAN DO IT. HAVE FAITH!

Hypothesis on Traits Being Measured

With the plants receiving various amounts of radiation, the possibilities of how the plant will be affected are endless.
Some mutations of the plants can be seen with the naked eye, such as the plants phenotype, while others such as
the plants genotype cannot be easily seen with the naked eye alone. Based on prior knowledge, it is possible to
hypothesize the possible effects the radiation had on the plants color, height and production of leaves. All of these
possible changes are caused due to the amount radiation that the plants received. When any organism is exposed to
radiation, the chances of its DNA being altered are very high. Radiation and other factors are the key of causing
mutations in an organisms DNA sequence, and when there is a mutation in the DNA sequence, the genes on the
DNA can affect the way the plant will grow and live. Genes are segments of DNA that are in charge of protein
production. Proteins are very specific and will be the factors that determine the trait of an organism, whether it can be
seen or not. In this case, the factors that are being measured in this experiment are color, height and leaf production.
The more radiation the seeds received, the less leaves it will produce. The less radiation the seeds received, the taller
the plant will grow. When it comes to plant height, tracheophytes are plants that have vascular tissues (xylem and
phloem) and contain lignin fortified tissue. Lignin fortified tissue is a tissue that supports a tall plant, allowing it be
grow tall and strong, but since the seeds were exposed to radiation, there is a possibility that the plant will not have
this supportive tissue, causing the plant to be shorter than the control. Lastly, the more radiation the seeds received,
the wider the range of colors the plants will express

I) Introduction
Background Information on Wisconsin Fast Plants
Wisconsin Fast Plants are plants that have a short life span; however when grown under ideal
growing conditions, such as being exposed to constant light and receiving enough water and

nutrition, these plants will produce seeds that are harvestable within 40 days. Wisconsin Fast
Growing Plants were developed by Professor Williams. Professor Williams bred these particular
plants, which are also known as Brassica rapa, because he wanted to find a way to improve the
resistance against certain diseases of cruciferous plants. Examples of cruciferous plants that
Professor William wanted to improve resistance on were Mustard, radish, cabbage, broccoli,
kohlrabi plants etc. However, growing and raising these cruciferous plants were quite time
consuming, therefore, Professor William bred these fast growing plants (also known as Brassica
rapa) because not only did they grow quicker, but also had accurate results of what would happen
to cruciferous plants because these fast growing plants were related to them. Spending
approximately 20 years in his lab experimenting, raising and selecting, Professor Williams was
able to lessen the life span of Cruciferous plants, which originally took 6 months to fully grow
and mature, down to five weeks. (http://www.fastplants.org/about/history.php)
Life Cycle of Wisconsin Fast Plants
All Wisconsin Fast Plants go through a life cycle that takes about 40 days in order to produce harvestable seeds.
Before the seeds are planted, all Brassica rapa plants contain an embryo within and have a seed coat on the outside
that prevents the growing embryo from dying and drying out. A seed can germinate if it is kept in a warm and moist
area, and once the seed comes in contact with a warm and moist environment, the seed will being to germinate.
(http://www.fastplants.org/about/history.php)
Wisconsin Fast Plants Program
www.fastplants.org

This is a general guide of what happens during the life cycle of a Brassica rapa plant
Day 1-2 After the initial planting and watering, the seed will being to germinate. While germinating, the seed
absorbs the water until the coat of the seed cracks off.
Day 3 The stem of the plant, which is also known as the hypocotyl, will arise from the soil and bring the seed
leaves along with it.
Day 4 From the surface of the soil and below, the roots grow downward, allowing it to anchor the plant and
supporting it. From the surface of the soil and above, the plant elongates, growing upwards against gravity and
towards its light source.
Day 5-8 - True leaves and stems grow at the shot of the plant where apical meristem occurs. In the soil, the roots
and root hairs absorb nutrients from the soil and transport it to the rest of the plant.
Day 9-13 flower buds start to form at the shots of where the meristem tissue is.
Day 14-17 Flowers start to bloom. You will see flowers forming from the buds. If you pollenate the flowers by
transferring pollen from one plant to another, the pollen that lands on the tip of the flowers pistil, a tube will form that
will transfer the pollen (sperm) into the ovule where the ova is at. Once the egg and pollen come in contact, it will
become fertilized.
Day 18-20 the fertilized egg inside of the flowers ovule will become the seeds of the embryo. The ovary of the
plant will become the fruit and will encase the seed inside of it.
Day21-40 The flower petals begin to wilt steadily and fall off. There is a new seed now and just like how the seed
was at the beginning, it will have a seed coat and an embryo inside of it. Until the seed reaches a warm and moist
environment, germination will not occur again, and the cycle has ended. (http://www.fastplants.org/life_cycle/)

Hypothesis on Traits Being Measured

With the plants receiving various amounts of radiation, the possibilities of how the plant will be affected are endless.
Some mutations of the plants can be seen with the naked eye, such as the plants phenotype, while others such as
the plants genotype cannot be easily seen with the naked eye alone. Based on prior knowledge, it is possible to
hypothesize the possible effects the radiation had on the plants color, height and production of leaves. All of these
possible changes are caused due to the amount radiation that the plants received. When any organism is exposed to
radiation, the chances of its DNA being altered are very high. Radiation and other factors are the key of causing
mutations in an organisms DNA sequence, and when there is a mutation in the DNA sequence, the genes on the
DNA can affect the way the plant will grow and live. Genes are segments of DNA that are in charge of protein
production. Proteins are very specific and will be the factors that determine the trait of an organism, whether it can be
seen or not. In this case, the factors that are being measured in this experiment are color, height and leaf production.
The more radiation the seeds received, the less leaves it will produce. The less radiation the seeds received, the taller
the plant will grow. When it comes to plant height, tracheophytes are plants that have vascular tissues (xylem and
phloem) and contain lignin fortified tissue. Lignin fortified tissue is a tissue that supports a tall plant, allowing it be
grow tall and strong, but since the seeds were exposed to radiation, there is a possibility that the plant will not have
this supportive tissue, causing the plant to be shorter than the control. Lastly, the more radiation the seeds received,
the wider the range of colors the plants will express

Metabolic Pathways of a Plant

A plant has many metabolic pathways that occur in their system. These metabolic pathways that occur in the plant
explain why and how a plant appears the way it is. Examples of some metabolic pathways that occur in a plant deals
with determining its height and color.
The metabolic pathways that are in charge of the production of chlorophyll (a pigment that gives plants their color)
are chlorophyll biosynthesis and chlorophyll catabolism. Photosynthetic organisms have a complex control over their
chlorophyll metabolism and are able to adapt the need for chlorophyll regardless of their changing environment and
surroundings