Apparatus Celery stalk with leaves Water Red food colouring
Method 1. Place a stalk of celery into a beaker of water with red food colouring.
2. Pour a thin layer of oil over the water to prevent evaporation.
3. Leave in a sunny place for a day or two. Results
Examine the celery stalk and cut a section in the middle. What do you see? What does this show?
Glucose that is not immediately required by the plant for energy is stored in different parts of the plant as starch. Carrot plants store starch in the root, celery stores it in the stems and lettuce stores it in the leaves.
Starch A carbohydrate produced by plants by forming a chain of glucose molecules.
Fig. 5 Celery showing xylem vessels.
Fig. 6 Glucose is stored as starch in different parts of plants.
Some of the glucose is used with other compounds to make protein, which is needed for growth and repair in the plant or else is stored in nuts or seeds such as beans or peas. When animals eat these plants they get energy from the starch contained in them and use the protein for growth and repair.
