How to Make Multi Colored Carnations



Did you know that you can use the principles of science to change boring, white carnations into the colors of the rainbow? Here's how to add a personal touch to a bouquet while learning a little bit about how plants work at the same time!



Steps   

  1. Assemble the materials.
  2. Fill each cup half full with water.
  3. Add about 20-30 drops of food coloring to each cup of water. The more food coloring you add, the better! You can even experiment with mixing different food colorings to make new colors, like putting blue and red together to make purple (if you don't already have purple food coloring).
  4. Click for a closer view
    Click for a closer view
    Trim the stem of each flower at an angle to create a fresh cut. Ideally, this should be done while the stem is held underwater so that no tiny air bubbles creep into the stem tube. The less air gets caught in the stem, the more visible the results of this experiment will be.
  5. Use a sharp knife to slit the stem straight down the middle.
  6. Put each half of the stem into separate cups of different colored water.
  7. Check back every few hours to see how things are progressing. It may take as many as 24 hours for the colored water to work its way up to the white petals. Make observations such as:

    • Which color worked its way up to the petals the fastest?
    • If you split one stem in two different colors of water, does the flower mix the colors or keep them separate?


Warnings   

  • All cutting should be done by a responsible adult.


Things You'll Need   

  • white carnations
  • plastic cups
  • food coloring (red, yellow, blue and green)
  • knife (and an adult to use it carefully)
  • water