Using Potatoes in the Lab

Potatoes are well known as a reliable and easy to obtain resource for key practicals such as investigating osmosis. However, there are other ways in which you can use these useful vegetables in the lab.

Practicals

• Osmosis - Measuring the water potential of a potato cell. Resource - Measuring the water potential of a potato cell including the Charadakov method.
  
• Osmosis - Effects of solute concentration on potato discs
  
• Asexual reproduction - Potatoes can be used as an example plant for asexual reproduction along with spider plants, the Mexican Hat Plant and Strawberries
• Carbon cycle - Fresh potatoes can be used to investigate the process of decay as part of the carbon cycle 
• Topic - Resource - Investigating potato cyst nematodes 

Teaching Topics

• Cell membranes
• Osmosis
• Asexual reproduction
• Carbon cycle (Decay)

Description

Potato, Solanum tuberosum

An edible tuber with world-wide distribution. The potato is an important source of dietary starch, along with rice, wheat and maize. Some cultivars are vulnerable to potato blight (Phytophthora infestans), a fungal disease that had devastating effects on the Irish potato crops of both 1845 and 1846, causing extensive malnutrition and loss of life.

Growing and sourcing

Easily obtained from greengrocers, markets and supermarkets at reasonable cost.

Curriculum Links   

CfE

• Scottish Highers Unit 3 Sustainability and interdependence
  

GCSE

• OCR GCSE Biology 3.7 module B4(d) diffusion and osmosis
• AQA biology B3.1.3 exchange systems in plants practicals 
• OCR GCSE Biol. B module B3 (g) (asexual reproduction)
• AQA GCSE Biol. B1.6.2 (potato decay)
• AQA GCSE Science A B1.6.2 (potato decay)
• OCR GCSE Science A B3.1 17 (d) (potato decay)

A-level

• OCR Biology AS/A2 3.1 AS F211 1.1.2 cell membranes (j)
• AQA Biology AS/A2 3.1.3 osmosis practical