In Science this week...

Stomata (Science - 27/04/2021)

In Science this week, Y9 pupils have been looking at stomata.

Stomata are tiny holes found on the underside of the leaf that control the rate of water loss and gas exchange from the plant. They are opened and closed by small cells called "guard cells". Students have managed to successfully see these tiny structures under a microscope, something which is notoriously difficult to achieve!

By painting the underside of the leaf with clear nail varnish, allowing this to dry and then pulling it off using Sellotape, students can then place the Sellotape under the microscope to see the imprints of these structures.

Please see the photograph below, taken down the eyepiece of a student's microscope.

The diagram below the picture shows which structures I'm referring to... there's one just at the end of the line across the image!