Name:______Date:______

#Gainz

Ecosystem

•A system that includes all living organisms (______) in an area as well as its physical environment (______) functioning together as a unit.

Question

•Are plants considered biotic or abiotic?

•______! Plants are living organisms, which depend heavily on abiotic factors.

Factors Affecting Plant Growth

1______

2______

3______

4______

-

5______

6______

Nutrients

Plants need 16 essential nutrients to live.

•2 Main Types

•______Nutrients

-Elements needed in large (macro) quantities

•______Nutrients

-Elements needed in very small (micro) quantities

16 Essential Elements

Hydrogen (H)

Oxygen (O2)

Carbon (C)

______

______

______

Magnesium (Mg)

Calcium (Ca)

Sulfur (S)

Iron (Fe)

Manganese (Mn)

Boron (B)

Copper (Cu)

Zinc (Zn)

Molybdenum (Mo)

Chlorine (Cl)

Nutrients Continued

•Plants get these three essential nutrients from ______and ______

•Carbon (C)

•Oxygen(O2)

•Hydrogen(H)

•Nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K).

•Found in soils

•Used in large by the plant amounts for growth and survival.

•Replenished through fertilization

Soil

•Soil pH determines the availability of nutrients at certain levels

•A well structured soil:

•Allows ______to emerge

•Allows establishment of a strong root system.

•Allows access to ______and ______

Light

Plants get energy from light through a process called

______, which takes CO2 + H20 and sunlight to create glucose, oxygen and water.

Light ______cause:

Stems will be leggy or stretched out

Leaves turn yellow

Leaves are too small

Leave or stems are spindly

Brown edges or tips on leaves

Lower leaves dry up

Air

•Wind increases heat loss due to ______and ______(wind chill).

•It also contributes to water loss by increasing the rate of evaporation from the soil and the ______of the plants.

Water

If a plant’s soil has too much water, the roots can rot becausethe plant can’t get enough ______from the soil.

If there is not enough ______for a plant, the nutrients it needs cannot travel through the plant.

- This leads to yellowing or dried leaves

Water continued

A gardener can check the amount of water in a plant's soil by inserting a finger in the soil.

•______soil has enough water, while dry soil needs to be watered.

Other signs of a plant needing water include a lighter-than-usual soil that is pulling away from the pot's sides.

Climate

Climate includes:

•______

•Rainfall

•______

•Temperature

•If the climate is too hot, the plants will die of ______and will shrivel up.

•If it is too cold, the plants will die from lack of sun.

Question

•What are the 6 factors that affect plant growth?

•______, ______, ______,

______, ______, ______

Why is this information helpful?

•______

•Future job in ______