Everything in nature has its own rhythm. The circadian (day-night) rhythm is perhaps the most prominent example. If you resist that natural urge, you will eventually run into problems. The same applies to plants, shows research by Cèlia Anton Sales.
The PhD candidate from Barcelona investigated the internal clock of lettuce plants. Does the modern, cultivated lettuce have the same internal clock as wild variants? Does that affect the plant's growth and, if so, should you keep the plant happy by adapting the surrounding day-night pattern? The answers to those questions are no, yes and yes.
These questions are being asked for good reason. Anton Sales's study, for which she received a PhD with distinction, is part of the Dutch Research Council's Sky High programme, which aims to improve vertical agriculture. Lettuce is an important crop in vertical agriculture, where plants are grown in strictly controlled conditions.
Yes, the internal clock of commercial lettuce plants differs a lot from that of their wild ancestors. 'The retardation is as much as five hours in some plants,' says Anton Sales. 'The average for the lettuces I studied was almost three hours.' She discovered this by tracking the movement of the lettuce leaves using time-lapse images.
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