Program 41 Fast Plant Growth Responses Peter Davies Plants don't seem to do much, at least not with any speed. Using computerized transducers we will measure plant growth with sufficient accuracy that we will be able to see how much a seedling grows in one minute.
Plants also respond to their environment in a way to optimize their own growth.
Following germination in darkness they grow as fast as possible through the soil to get into the light to make food by photosynthesis. Then they slow down. We can determine the light colors to which they respond on emerging from darkness and how long it takes them to respond to different light colors, or to white light presented as a burst or as continuous light. While they cannot run away, they can also detect the presence of competing plants above them or even the presence of potential competitors up to a meter away, and try to out-pace them to stay in the sunlight. Come with ideas on how they might do it.