Bleach Flowers

Needed:

  • Flowers of different kinds and colors
  • A jar
  • A string
  • A plastic lid for the jar
  • Household ammonia
Experiment 1:
Tie the flowers and suspend them in the jar by running the string through the lid. Pour a little ammonia into the jar and watch colors disappear. Red, pink, and purple flowers turn green. White and yellow flowers are not changed.

Explanation:
Flower petals get their color from the combination of chlorophyll (which is green) and other substances in the petal. The ammonia gas which rises from the household liquid destroys some of the colors but not others. When the colors that hide the green chlorophyll are destroyed, the green from the chlorophyll remains.

Experiment 2:
Try wetting pieces of colored paper and cloth and suspending them in the jar. See how many of their colors change.