How Can Flowers Change Color? An Easy Science Experiment to Try at Home

Concepts:

• Simple Concept: Plants need water to survive. By changing the color of the water that the plants are in, you can visually see that they are “drinking” the water because the plant changes colors.

• Advanced Concept: Plants “drink” water through capillary action. This means that water molecules stick together and to the sides of the tiny tubes of the plant (xylem tubes) to move up and throughout the plant.

Materials:

• White Flowers

• Food Coloring

• Water

• Clear Cups

• Scissors

  
  

Instructions:

• Cut the stem of a white flower at a 45 degree angle.

• Place the flower in a clear cup filled with water.

• Add food coloring to the water. The more drops you add, the darker the color will become on the flower.

• Over time, the petals on the flower will gradually change color. The longer you wait, the more colorful the flower will become.

• Repeat with other colors.