THE DEPENDENCE OF FLOWERING IN SEVERAL LONG‐DAY PLANTS ON THE SPECTRAL COMPOSITION OF LIGHT EXTENDING THE PHOTOPERIOD

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Abstract
The results of experiments in which the length, time, and spectral composition of photoperiod extensions and light breaks were varied are presented. The plants used included Hyoscyamus niger L. (annual henbane); Beta vulgaris L. (annual sugar beet); Hordeum vulgare L. (barley); Anethum graveolens L. (dill); Lolium temulentum L. (darnel); and Petunia hybrida Vilm. (petunia). Brief light breaks in the middle of each night failed to cause flower induction. Extended breaks and 8‐hr extensions of the photoperiod were effective, particularly those with light from BCJ, rubyred, or incandescent lamps. For all lamp types and species, 8‐hr extensions prior to each daylight period were more effective than those given at the end of each day. Four‐hour light breaks were most effective when given in the middle of each night. The flowering caused by 4‐hr breaks with BCJ light from 8 pm to 12 pm was suppressed when the BCJ light was preceded by 4 hr of fluorescent light. When light from BCJ or fluorescent lamps was interpolated for 2 hr at various times during 8‐hr extensions with light from the other type of lamp, BCJ light stimulated flowering the most, and fluorescent light inhibited it the most, when interpolated at the end of the daylight period. These results are discussed, and a model of how phytochrome participates in the flowering of long‐day plants is presented.