Did you know the human body is approximately 60 percent water? Water is such an important part of how the human body functions that every system in your body requires water to function. In the wintertime, there may be parts of your body that feel more dry than others. People use lip balm in the winter because there’s not enough moisture in their lips. How does that water travel to your lips anyway? Water travels through our body via our capillaries. These tiny tubes move water here, there, and everywhere our bodies need it.
Plants have similar systems that help gather and disperse water. A fun way to learn about how water travels through different things is to watch how colored water travels up a celery stalk or a flower’s stem. What do you think the celery and flower will look like after it soaks up the colored water? Where do you think the colored water will go? Let’s do science!
What you need:
• A glass or jar
• Water
• Fresh celery (carnation is optional)
• Scissors (or knife)
• Food coloring (blue works well)
What you do:
1.Fill your glass with water.
2.Add food dye (at least twenty drops).
3.Break off one to two celery stalks.
4.Cut off the bottom of the celery stalk (and/or carnation).
5.Place the celery stalk (and/or carnation) into the water.
6.Observe what happens and record your findings.
Challenge: See what happens when you try this with regular celery versus celery that is labeled organic. You may also want to try filming the process so you can see how long it takes for the colored water to reach the leaves (or petals).
