Effect of Different Light Colors (Red, Blue, and Green) on the Growth and Physiological Performance of Seedlings
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66553/japr.2026.115Keywords:
Chlorophyll content, Environmental parameter, Light emitting diode, Light quality, PhotomorphogenesisAbstract
Photosynthesis, morphogenesis and biochemical composition of plants is controlled by an environmental parameter (light) is the presence of a set of photoreceptors. The objective of the present study was to assess the effect of illumination with red (660 nm), blue (450 nm) and green (530 nm) emitting diode (LED) lights on the growth and physiological performance of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) seedlings as compared to a white-light control under controlled greenhouse conditions. The seedlings were cultivated in the same photon flux density (PFD) (150 ± 5 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹) and photoperiod (16 hours of light and 8 hours of dark) for 21 days for each light treatment. Growth parameters were measured such as plant height, leaf number, stem diameter, root length and biomass; physiological indices were measured: total chlorophyll content and carotenoid content. Red light resulted in the highest plant height and internode elongation along with the characteristic of auxin related growth, whereas, blue light gave shorter and more compact plants, with significantly higher number of leaves, stem diameter, chlorophyll content and biomass of roots. The lowest growth and chlorophyll content were observed under the green light for all treatments, which has the least absorption by chlorophyll pigments. Intermediate balanced growth was achieved with white light. The present results corroborate the differential effects of red and blue wavelengths on growth and photosynthetic pigment content of the plant, and the role of blue light in producing compact, stress-tolerant growth.
References
. Cope, K. R., & Bugbee, B. (2013). Spectral effects of three types of white light-emitting diodes on plant growth and development: Absolute versus relative amounts of blue light. HortScience, 48(4), 504–509.
. Folta, K. M., & Carvalho, S. D. (2015). Photoreceptors and control of horticultural plant traits. HortScience, 50(9), 1274–1280.
. Hogewoning, S. W., Trouwborst, G., Maljaars, H., Poorter, H., van Ieperen, W., & Harbinson, J. (2010). Blue light dose–responses of leaf photosynthesis, morphology, and chemical composition of Cucumis sativus grown under different combinations of red and blue light. Journal of Experimental Botany, 61(11), 3107–3117.
. Kim, H. H., Goins, G. D., Wheeler, R. M., & Sager, J. C. (2004). Green-light supplementation for enhanced lettuce growth under red- and blue-light-emitting diodes. HortScience, 39(7), 1617–1622.
. Ouzounis, T., Rosenqvist, E., & Ottosen, C. O. (2015). Spectral effects of artificial light on plant physiology and secondary metabolism: A review. HortScience, 50(8), 1128–1135.
. Smith, H. L., McAusland, L., & Murchie, E. H. (2017). Don't ignore the green light: Exploring diverse roles in plant processes. Journal of Experimental Botany, 68(9), 2099–2110.
. Wang, H., Gu, M., Cui, J., Shi, K., Zhou, Y., & Yu, J. (2009). Effects of light quality on CO2 assimilation, chlorophyll-fluorescence quenching, expression of Calvin cycle genes, and carbohydrate accumulation in Cucumis sativus. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology, 96(1), 30–37.