BOTANY Higher Secondary Second Year - Textbooks Online

5.5. Photoperiodism and vernalization
The response of a plant to the relative lengths of light and dark
periods is known as photoperiodism. In plants, most significant
photoperiodic response is the initiation of flowering. It has been first
observed in Maryland Mammoth variety of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum).
From the observation of Garner and Allard all the plants do not
require the same length of light and dark periods for flowering. Plants
require specific period of light and darkness for flowering. It is known as
critical period.
Plants are classified into three classes
1. The plants requiring longer exposure to light than their critical period
are known as long day plants eg. wheat and oats.
2. The plants requiring light for a shorter period than their critical period
are known as short day plants eg. tobacco and Chrysanthemum.
3. The plants in which flowering is unaffected by the photoperiod are
known as day neutral plants eg. sunflower and maize.
Phytochromes and flowering
In 1959, Butler et al. were able to discover a photoreceptor flower
inducing pigment in plants which they name phytochromes. It is believed
to be widely present in all green plants. Chemically, phytochrome is a
biliprotein and exists in two forms. One form absorbs red with the wave
length of 660 nm called Pr and the other form absorbs far red with the
wave length of 730 nm called Pfr. The two forms of phytochrome are
interconvertible as shown below:
Based on the absorption spectra, Pr is
also called P 660 and Pfr is P 730. In short
day plants, Pr promotes flowering while Pfr
suppresses it , while it is viceversa in long
day plants.
Vernalization
The term vernalization was first introduced by a Russian scientist
T.D. Lysenko in 1920. Many species, especially biennials and perennials
are induced to flower at low temperature range of 1 o C to 10 o C. This is
known as vernalization.
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Light
660-665 nm
Pr Pfr
730-735 nm
Darkness