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Blue light inhibits stem elongation of chrysanthemum

Article  in  Acta horticulturae · June 2006

DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2006.711.50

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Blue Light Inhibits Stem Elongation of Chrysanthemum
H. Shimizu and Z. Ma S. Tazawa
Ibaraki University, College of Agriculture Iwasaki Electric Co. Ltd.
Ibaraki Saitama
Japan Japan
M. Douzono E.S. Runkle and R.D. Heins
National Institute of Floral Sciences Department of Horticulture
Ibaraki Michigan State University
Japan East Lansing, MI
USA
Keywords: Dendranthema × grandiflorum, growth retardant, internode elongation, image
processing, light quality
Abstract
Blue light (400 to 500 nm) has been reported to have an inhibitory effect on
plant extension growth. Thus, application of blue light could be used as an
alternative to growth retarding chemicals to suppress plant height. Experiments
were performed to determine if blue light could be used to inhibit internode
elongation of chrysanthemum (Dendranthema × grandiflorum cv. Reagan).
Experiments were performed in a controlled environment cabinet containing eight
controllable fluorescent lamps and blue light-emitting diodes (LEDs). A CCD
camera with sensitivity to infra-red light and an infrared illuminator were used to
obtain plant images during the day and night. The plant images were obtained every
10 minutes over a three-week period. Plants were exposed to light from fluorescent
lamps from 0630 to 1830 HR and a 4-h night interruption (NI, from 2230 to 0230 HR)
was delivered by fluorescent lamps or blue LEDs. Internode elongation was
relatively slow during the 12-h base photoperiod and increased during darkness.
Compared to the NI delivered by fluorescent lamps, the blue LED NI inhibited
internode elongation by approximately 60%. The inhibitory effect of blue light
occurred during the night interruption and in the subsequent light period. These
results indicate that blue light could be used to inhibit extension growth and
therefore could reduce the application of plant growth retarding chemicals.
INTRODUCTION
Plant growth is significantly influenced by light quality, or the spectral
distribution of light. Blue light inhibits extension growth, including stem elongation and
leaf area (Appelgren, 2003; Dougher and Bugbee, 2004.; Folta et al., 2003; Kubota et al.,
1997; Laskowski et al., 1988; Rajapakse et al., 1993). The effects of other wavebands of
light have also been investigated, such as red light (600 to 700 nm) (Brown et al., 1995;
Moe and Heins, 1990), green light (500 to 600 nm) (Folta, 2004), and blue and red light
combined (Kigel and Cosgrove, 1990). Other studies investigating the effects of reducing
specific wavebands of light using photselective filters have also improved our
understanding of how light quality influences plant growth and development (Oyaert et
al., 1999; Runkle and Heins, 2003). Manipulating the light environment could be an
alternative strategy to use of plant growth retarding chemicals to suppress extension
growth of floricultural crops and vegetable transplants.
There have been several strategies used to measure plant elongation, including
final average internode length (a measurement made after extension growth is complete)
and a non-contact measurement system using image processing (Shimizu and Heins,
1995). An image processing system measures short-term extension growth (e.g., every 10
minutes) without the physical plant contact that tensiometers provide. A limitation to
previously described imaging processing systems is that only one plant image is captured

Proc. Vth IS on Artificial Lighting

Ed. R. Moe 363
Acta Hort. 711, ISHS 2006
at a high resolution. Obtaining images of multiple plants is required for adequate
statistical analysis. Therefore, experiments have been repeated to obtain an adequate
dataset, but maintaining very similar experimental conditions from one repetition to the
next can be difficult.
The objectives of this research were 1) to develop an image processing system that
captured two or more plants while maintaining high image resolution, 2) to measure
internode elongation of chrysanthemum under NI lighting treatments using the developed
system, and 3) to quantify the effect of a blue light NI on internode elongation in
chrysanthemum.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Plant Material
Rooted cuttings of chrysanthemum cv. Reagan (Dendranthema × grandiflorum )
were planted into 9-cm plastic containers filled with a commercially available medium
consisting of red clay, bark, and perlite and 0.4, 1.9, and 0.6 g of N, P, and K per kg of
media, respectively. Plants were grown as single stem cut flowers in a glass-glazed
greenhouse at National Institute of Floral Sciences without any supplemental lighting.
Temperature inside the greenhouse was controlled by heating (when <15°C) and
ventilating (when >25°C). Night-interruption lighting was provided by incandescent
lamps from 2130 to 0230 HR to keep the short-day plants vegetative. Plants were watered
as needed with water only. Plants were pinched two and four weeks after transplant, then
they were transferred to Ibaraki University for the lighting experiments.
Growth Chamber and Image Capture System
A growth chamber (0.9 m x 1.0 m x 0.6 m) was built in a laboratory at Ibaraki
University. The experimental setup illustrated in Figure 1 was installed in a larger growth
chamber. Temperature of the growth chamber was controlled at 20°C by a temperature
controller (SDC31, Yamatake, Tokyo), a chiller (ZC-500, Zensui, Osaka), and a 1000-W
heater (KHC-0703, Koizumi, Tokyo). A 12-h photoperiod (0630 to 1830 HR) was
provided using eight fluorescent lamps (FHF32EX-N-H, Panasonic, Osaka) that delivered
150 µmol m-2 s-1 at the top of the plant canopy. The lamps were connected to a light
controller (NQ21475-321, Panasonic, Osaka) and a multipurpose timer (H2F-D, Omron,
Kyoto). Night interruption lighting was provided from 2230 to 0230 HR by the fluorescent
lamps (150 µmol m-2 s-1) or blue LEDs (1.7 µmol·m-2·s-1) with a peak wavelength of 450
nm (Iwasaki Electric, Gyoda) which was the maximum output, but PPF value of these
two light sources differed vastly.
Four plants were placed on a turntable that was driven by a stepping motor
(DG130R-ASAA, Oriental Motor, Tokyo) and controlled by a computer. The turntable
was placed in the center of the growth chamber, and a CCD camera (XC-77, Sony,
Tokyo) focused on the canopy of one plant. An infra-red radiation source and a diffusion
board were arranged at opposite sides of the plant. The lens of the CCD camera was
covered with an infrared filter, which corresponded with the wavelength of the lighting
equipment. This enabled very similar plant images when captured in light or in darkness.
Silhouette images were captured as described by Shimizu and Heins (1995).
After the image of the first plant was obtained, the turntable rotated 90 degrees
and the image of the second plant was captured. This procedure was repeated and the
images of four plants were obtained and stored in the computer every 10 minutes. Data
were collected for three weeks. Images were downloaded and computer software
calculated internode length. Data from four plants was collected for each experimental
repetition and NI lighting treatment. The experiment was performed twice for each light
source, for a total of eight plants per lighting treatment. The length of time needed for an
internode to develop to 50% of its final length was determined and is referred to as 50%L.

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Extension of a single internode of chrysanthemum was determined over a two-
week period, and the rate of extension was essentially constant until the tenth day after
node initiation. By the thirteenth day, extension growth had nearly ceased. We quantified
internode extension during a day (referred to as the daily growth profile) when light from
fluorescent lamps was used as the night interruption. Extension growth increased at the
end of the base photoperiod, during the first dark period (dark1) (Fig. 2). Extension
growth was reduced during the NI, but increased again during the second dark period
(dark2). Therefore, internode extension growth was greater in darkness compared to when
plants were exposed to light (during the base photoperiod and the NI).
We also quantified the daily growth profile when plants were exposed to a NI
from blue LEDs. Internode extension of chrysanthemum increased by an average of 1.6
mm·d-1 when plants were exposed to the NI delivered by fluorescent lamps. Plants grown
under an NI delivered by the blue LEDs increased by an average of 1.0 mm d-1, which
was significantly (P=0.028) less than plants under the fluorescent lamps.
The base photoperiod was 12 h, while the other periods (dark1, NI, and dark2)
were 4 h each. We calculated the internode elongation rate (mm·h-1) to compare the effect
of the NI light quality during each period (Fig. 3). Regardless of light quality during the
NI, the extension growth rate was higher in darkness compared to when plants were
exposed to light. When light from blue LEDs was provided as the NI, the inhibitory effect
on elongation rate was observed in all four light and dark periods. If we assume that the
elongation rate was constant during each period, a daily internode elongation profile can
be developed for each NI treatment (Fig. 4). Here, daily internode elongation began at
22:30, which was at the onset of the NI.
The use of blue light to inhibit plant elongation has been previously documented
with chrysanthemum (Oyaert et al., 1999; Kim et al., 2004). Additional studies have
investigated the effect of light quality on plants using photoselective films that reduced
the transmission of certain wavelengths of light (Runkle et al., 2001; Kigel and Cosgrove
1990). The light quality in these latter experiments contained much broader light spectra
compared to the narrow band of blue light emitted from the LEDs used in these
experiments, which makes comparisons among investigations more difficult. Runkle and
Heins (2001) reported that environments deficient in blue light promoted internode
elongation in several long-day plants compared to unfiltered sunlight with a similar daily
light integral. Laskowski and Briggs (1989 or 1988?) grew pea seedlings under red light
and characterized the effects of a 30-second pulse of blue light (80 µmol m-2 s-1) on
epicotyl elongation. Elongation was rapidly inhibited by blue light and recovery began
about 30 minutes after the irradiation with blue light. An inhibitory effect on elongation
occurred not only during the irradiation with blue light, but also during a period of time
following the blue light exposure, which is consistent with the results reported here with
chrysanthemum.
The use of blue light to inhibit extension growth is a potential strategy for growers
to produce plants with more compact growth. An NI is often provided to long-day plants
to promote flowering, and to short-day plants to inhibit flowering. An NI that contains
only blue light may not sufficiently regulate flowering in some species, and further
investigations are warranted. However, an NI with blue light could possibly be used to
inhibit extension growth of day-neutral plants or when photoperiod does not need to be
controlled.
CONCLUSIONS
An image processing system that can capture four plants was developed to analyze
internode elongation in chrysanthemum. This system was used to quantify how an NI
from blue LEDs and fluorescent lamps influenced internode elongation. The daily
extension growth profile under fluorescent lamps showed that internode length increased
more rapidly in darkness than when exposed to light. Daily internode elongation was
inhibited by approximately 60% when an NI was delivered by blue LEDs compared with

365
fluorescent lamps. The inhibitory effect of blue light on extension growth was maintained
not only during the NI, but also in subsequent dark and light periods.
Literature Cited
Appelgren, M. 2003. Effects of light quality on stem elongation of Pelargonium in vitro.
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Dougher, T.A.O. and Bugbee, B. 2004. Long-term blue light effects on the histology of
lettuce and soybean leaves and stems. J. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 129: 467-472.
Folta, K.M. 2004. Green light stimulates early stem elongation, antagonizing light-
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Folta, K.M., Lieg, E.J., Durham, T. and Spalding, E.P. 2003. Primary inhibition of
hypocotyl growth and phototropism depend differently on phototropin–mediated
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light. Plant Physiol. 95: 1049-1056.
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Figures
13.50
Base Photoperiod dark 1 NI dark 2
To p view 13.00

Internode elongation (um)

12.50

Diffusion pane l
CCD ca mera IR filter plant IR lighting apparatus 12.00

11.50
Front view
NI: night interruption
pot 11.00

6:00

8:00

10:00

12:00

14:00

16:00

18:00

20:00

22:00

0:00

2:00

4:00
Time of the day
Stepping motor

Fig. 1. Functional diagram of the image Fig. 2. Profile of chrysanthemum

capture system. internode elongation during one
day when the NI was from
fluorescent lamps.

0.14
NI Dark 2 Base Photoperiod Dark 1 Period 1.8
Internode elongation rate (mm/hour)

0.12 1.6
fluorescent lamp Light source fluorescent lamp
fluorescent lamp
blue LED blue LED
0.10 1.4
Internode length (mm)

1.2
0.08
1

0.06 0.8
**
0.6
0.04
0.4
fluorescent lamp
0.02 0.2
** blue LED
0
0.00
22 23 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
22:20-2:10 2:20-6:10 6:20-18:30 18:40-22:10
time of the day
Time of the day

Fig. 3. Average internode elongation Fig. 4. Comparison of estimated internode

rate of chrysanthemum during elongation of chrysanthemum during
each light and dark period. a 24h period beginning with the onset
of the NI.

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