PLANTS, HENS AND ELECTRIC LIGHT

Hokitika Guardian, 5 November 1931, Page 3

PLANTS, HENS AND ELECTRIC LIGHT

“Naturalist’’ writes: ‘‘it is a curious fact that flowers do not seem to be able to distinguish between the artificial .stimulus of electric light and'the natural influence of p the sun. Most flowers growing where electric light is strong at night will remain open, aiid actually turn their faces toward it. In one of the trans-harbour suburbs there is a relatively large area of the common J variety of bright yeilow daisy growing round an electric fight pole. At night . those flowers in the immediate circle of | light are wide open, those further away ) . i the dimmer shadows are partially I open, while those outside the lighted | area are closed. >.or -is this peculiar ty j confined to one variety of flowers. Horti-! culturists have discovered that plants in a hothouse will grow .more rapidly it the hothouse is lighted at by electric light than tinder normal conditions, and the plant does not suffer by its lack- of ‘rest,’ so -to speak. The field has been widened further. Experiments were made on and it was found that if the runs were lighted at night the hens teid more eggs. The theory is that the birds have more time to gather food. Thus poultry farmers hit upon the notion of lighting the pens artificially when egg' supplies are nor- j maily short and when prices are high.”