Early growth of Scots pine seedlings is affected by seed origin and light quality.

Plants have evolved a suite of photoreceptors to perceive information from the surrounding light conditions. The aim of this study was to examine photomorphogenic effects of light quality on the growth of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) seedlings representing southern (60 °N) and northern (68 °N) origins in Finland.

Contributions of day length, temperature and individual variability on the rate and timing of leaf senescence in the common lilac Syringa vulgaris.

Deciduous trees prepare for winter by breaking up chlorophyll and other nitrogen-rich compounds, which are resorbed for storage. Timing is important as senescence too early will waste growing season, while senescence too late risks the loss of the leaf resources to frost. While plants of temperate and boreal regions use decreasing day length as a cue of approaching winter, we show that decreasing temperature may also play a role in the variability of leaf senescence.

Competitive success of southern populations of and under simulated southern climate experiment in the subarctic.

Global warming has been commonly accepted to facilitate species' range shifts across latitudes. Cross-latitudinal transplantations support this; many tree species can well adapt to new geographical areas. However, these studies fail to capture species' adaptations to new light environment because the experiments were not designed to explicitly separate species' responses to light and temperature.

Targeted use of LEDs in improvement of production efficiency through phytochemical enrichment.

Based on available literature, ecology and economy of light emitting diode (LED) lights in plant foods production were assessed and compared to high pressure sodium (HPS) and compact fluorescent light (CFL) lamps. The assessment summarises that LEDs are superior compared to other lamp types. LEDs are ideal in luminous efficiency, life span and electricity usage.

Decreased frost hardiness of Vaccinium vitis-idaea in reponse to UV-A radiation.

The aim of this study was to investigate plant frost hardiness responses to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, since the few results reported are largely contradictory. It was hypothesized that functional adaptation of life forms could explain these contradictions. Dwarf shrubs and tree seedlings, representing both evergreen and deciduous forms, were tested (Vaccinium vitis-idaea, Vaccinium myrtillus, Pinus sylvestris, Betula pubescens and its red form f.