Question

"If the total water potential in the soil around a plant root were -50 kPa, water would move from the soil into the root if the water potential inside the root cells were ____ kPa." anything between 50 and -50 -100 0

Answer 1

-100

Step-by-step explanation:

If the total water potential in the soil around a plant root were -50 kPa, water would move from the soil into the root if the water potential inside the root cells were -100 kPa.

The water potential of a substance represents the measure of potential energy in water molecules in a system as compared to that of pure water. It is also a measure of the tendency of water to move from one region to another.

Usually, water will move from the region of high water potential to the region of low water potential. Hence, for water to move from the soil into the root, the root must have a lower water potential than the soil.

The soil had -50 kPa water potential, hence the only option that is lower than -50 kPa is -100.

The correct answer is -100 kPa.