Grow a Crystal Tree
Watch simple household ingredients transform cardboard into a lush, snow-dusted forest right before your eyes with this magical crystal pine tree experiment!
Materials Needed
- Paperboard (such as a cereal box)
- Scissors
- Pencil
- Small dish or tray
- Table salt
- Water
- Laundry bluing
- Household ammonia
- Green food coloring
- Beaker or mixing glass
- Spoon or stir stick
Step-by-Step Instructions
Cut out three identical pine tree shapes from paperboard.Cut vertical slots along the center line of each tree cutout.
Fold the trees and slot them together to form a standing 3D pine tree.
Add 2 tablespoons of salt, 2 tablespoons of water, 2 tablespoons of bluing, 1 tablespoon of household ammonia, and several drops of green food coloring to a beaker.
Stir the solution thoroughly until blended.
Drop green food coloring onto each tip and branch of the paperboard tree.
Place the 3D paperboard tree in the center of a shallow dish and pour the solution over the top.
Leave the setup undisturbed overnight to watch your crystal foliage grow!
Learn More
This frosty transformation happens thanks to capillary action and rapid evaporation! Paperboard is filled with tiny porous fibers that pull liquid upward against gravity, similar to how plant stems draw water from soil. As the liquid mixture climbs through the cardboard tree, the water and ammonia begin to evaporate into the surrounding air. The remaining salt and laundry bluing particles can no longer stay dissolved, causing them to recrystallize and cluster on the edges of the branches into delicate, snow-like crystal blooms.If your young scientist loved watching crystals sprout overnight, keep the chemistry fun growing with the Eggsperiments kit from the KiwiCo Store!