Abstract
FLUORESCENT lighting is used as a source of artificial light in plant growth chambers and to extend day length for plants grown in greenhouse conditions. The electrical circuit for a fluorescent light includes a ballast choke which usually consists of lacquered copper wire wound on an iron core and insulated with impregnated paper or cloth. We found that peas grown in our growth room were affected by ethylene which was being produced by the ballast chokes. Ethylene is a plant hormone which has a physiological effect on plants at concentrations as low as 0.06 µg/1, (ref. 1).
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Pratt, H. K., and Goeschl, J. D., Ann. Rev. Plant Physiol., 20, 541 (1969).
McGlasson, W. B., Austral. J. Biol. Sci., 22, 489 (1969).
Burg, S. P., and Burg, E. A., Plant Physiol., 42, 144 (1967).
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WILLS, R., PATTERSON, B. Ethylene, a Plant Hormone from Fluorescent Lighting. Nature 225, 199 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1038/225199a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/225199a0
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