Re: [AGA Member] Red Pigment-K spectrum experiment

[Roger Miller <roger@spinn.net>]

On Tuesday 23 September 2003 06:28, you wrote:

> This happens all the
> time in thick jungles, most lower strata plants will have dark red
> undersides to their leaves as the blue light is the only thing penetrating
> to them.

Phil,

>From what I've read, the thinking on the red underside in understory jungle 
plants is that the color lets them scavenge *red* light by reflecting the 
light back up into the leaf.  It seems that if the pigment were there to 
capture blue light that it would be on the top of the leaf.

Also from reading now long ago, the light that penetrates to a forest 
understory is heavily green, not blue.  Blue light is used by the overstory 
plants.  North sky light is blue, so the light in a shaded area open to the 
north might be blue, but that doesn't describe a forest understory.

Dennis,

were the Lobelia leaves supposed to be red on top or on the bottom?  Either 
way, my Lobelia tend to be solid green under relatively dim light and get 
purple tinges in bright light.  The color appears on the leaf undersides and 
on top of young leaves.


Roger Miller 
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