Hormonal and daylength control of potato tuberization

Abstract

Plants utilize light not only as source of energy in photosynthesis but also as a source of information of the environment in which they develop. An incident radiation enriched in FR light, such as that of sunlight filtered through a leaf canopy, is perceived by the plant as the competing presence of other plants for light. This induces an increased elongation response aimed at optimising the capture of incident light. By measuring the relative duration of the day and night plants can also recognise the season of the year in which they are growing. Moving from the equator towards the poles, the days become longer in summer and shorter in winter. The rate at which daylength changes varies during the year, with little change from day to day in mid summer or winter, and more rapid changes as days become longer during spring or shorter during fall.