Question

Mendel green 633 green pea plant with either wrinkled seed coats (dominant) or smooth (recessive) if the ratio of the wrinkled seed plants to smooth is 3:1 how many smooth seed coat plants did he grow

158
211
633
844

Answer 1

In Mendel's classic experiments with pea plants, he found that when he crossed plants with a dominant trait (wrinkled seed coats) and a recessive trait (smooth seed coats), the ratio of the dominant trait to the recessive trait in the offspring was typically 3:1.

If Mendel grew a total of 633 plants, we can use this ratio to determine the number of smooth seed coat plants (recessive).

In a 3:1 ratio of dominant to recessive traits, for every 3 plants with wrinkled seed coats, there is 1 plant with smooth seed coats. This means there are 3 parts of wrinkled seed coat plants for every 1 part of smooth seed coat plants, making a total of 4 parts.

To find the number of smooth seed coat plants:

1. Divide the total number of plants by the total parts in the ratio:
\[
633 \div 4 = 158.25
\]

2. Since we're dealing with whole plants, we can confirm that this means:
- 3 parts are for wrinkled seed coats:
\[
3 \times 158 = 474
\]
- 1 part is for smooth seed coats:
\[
1 \times 158 = 158
\]

Thus, Mendel grew **158 smooth seed coat plants**.
The correct answer is **158**.