Many biotic and abiotic factors can affect the growth of plants - AQA - GCSE Biology Combined Science - Question 1 - 2018 - Paper 2
Question 1
Many biotic and abiotic factors can affect the growth of plants.
Are the factors in Table 1 biotic or abiotic?
Tick one box for each factor.
| Factor | Biot... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Many biotic and abiotic factors can affect the growth of plants - AQA - GCSE Biology Combined Science - Question 1 - 2018 - Paper 2
Step 1
Explain why the students thought their hypothesis would be correct.
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Answer
The students likely believed their hypothesis would be correct because as one moves away from the tree, there would be less competition for light from the tree's leaves. This could allow more sunlight to reach the plants growing farther away, which is essential for photosynthesis. Additionally, they might have considered that plants located farther from the tree would have access to more nutrients from the soil due to reduced competition.
Step 2
Give the scientific name of each piece of equipment.
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Answer
Quadrat
Light meter
Step 3
Calculate the total area sampled.
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Answer
The total area sampled can be calculated using the formula:
Total area sampled = area of one quadrat × number of quadrats
Given that the area of the quadrat is 0.5 m × 0.5 m = 0.25 m². If they sampled every 2 metres from 0 to 10 metres, this would result in 5 quadrats (0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10). Therefore:
Total area sampled = 0.25 m² × 6 = 1.5 m².
Step 4
Suggest one reason why.
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One reason could be to keep light (intensity) as similar as possible across the sampling area to minimize fluctuations due to changes in weather or time of day that might affect plant growth measurements.
Step 5
Give one way the investigation could be improved.
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The investigation could be improved by repeating the measurements in different directions around the tree to ensure that the results are not influenced by other environmental factors or variations in light availability.
Step 6
Which plant species in Table 2 will only grow at high light intensity?
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The plant species that will only grow at high light intensity is the daisy, as it is not recorded at lower light intensity levels.
Step 7
What conclusion can be made about the relationship between light intensity and the total percentage cover of plants?
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The conclusion that can be made is that as light intensity increases, the total percentage cover of plants also generally increases, demonstrating a positive correlation. This is evidenced by the data in Table 2, where higher light intensity values correspond to higher total percentage covers.
Step 8
Suggest one different factor that may cause these results.
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One different factor that may cause these results could be water availability. In areas with strong light intensity, water might evaporate quickly, affecting the moisture levels available to the plants.
