Life Movements in Plants, Volume IIBose, Jagadis Chandra
Science
Life Movements in Plants, Volume II
Bose, Jagadis Chandra
Growth (Plants); Plants -- Irritability and movements
_Effect of increasing intensity of light on the tropic curvature of
growing organs._--As the tropic curvature is primarily due to the
retardation of growth induced by light at the proximal side of the
organ, it will be of interest to recapitulate the results I obtained (p.
208) on the effects of increasing intensity of light on growth itself.
The normal rate of growth of the specimen in the dark was 0·47 µ per
second; this was reduced to 0·29 µ under an intensity of one unit, to
0·17 µ under two, and to 0·10 µ under three units. Growth became
arrested when the intensity was raised to four units. Thus increasing
intensity of light induces an increasing retardation of growth at the
proximal side of the organ. This aided by the effect of indirect
stimulus at the distal side brings about an increasing positive
curvature.
_Experiment 130._--The flower bud of _Crinum_ was used for the
experiment, the source of light being a small arc lamp. The duration of
exposure was one minute. Increasing intensity of light gave rise to
increasing positive curvatures (Fig. 125) in the ratio of 1:2·5:5 under
increasing intensities which varied as 1:2:3.
THE EFFECT OF INCREASING ANGLE.
The quantity of light which falls on an unit area of the responding
organ varies as sin [Greek: th] where [Greek: th] is the directive angle
_i.e._ the angle made by the rays with the surface. Some allowance has
to be made for the amount of light reflected from the surface, this
being greater at 45° than at 90°.
[Illustration: FIG. 126.--The Collimator.]
_Tropic response of pulvinus of_ Desmodium gyrans: _Experiment
131._--For application of light at various angles an incandescent
electric lamp was mounted at one end of a brass tube, a collimating
lens being placed at the other (Fig. 126). The parallel beam of light
from the collimator could be sent at various angles by rotating the
collimator tube round an axis at right angles to the tube. The specimen
employed was the terminal leaflet of _Desmodium gyrans_; light was
applied for a minute in the two successive experiments for the two
angles of 45° and 90°. The record (Fig. 127) shows that the phototropic
effect increases with the directive angle. In the present case the ratio
of the two effects is 1·6:1, which is not very different from the ratio
sin 90°/sin 45° = 1·4.
[Illustration: FIG. 127.--Effect of angle of inclination of light on the
tropic curvature of pulvinus. The first response is to light at 45° and
the second, to 90°. (_Desmodium gyrans_).]
[Illustration: FIG. 128.--Series of tropic curvatures of growing bud of
_Crinum_ to alternate stimulation by light at 45° and 90°.]
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