The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1880-09-16
Electricity In, Horticulture.

ElectTlClCy IN HOTLculCuFes !
Just now the moneyed horticultur.
al world is all excitement over the
experiments Of DR.. G.. w. Slemens in
growing plants with the illumination
of electric light, who spent years of
time and a great amount of money in
the prosecution of his researches. He
is the possessor Of tensive gardens,and
he has not hesitatcd in the expenditure
OF money in a system Of experiments
hitherto prosecuted OH very limited
scale. The learned DR.. proceeded in
mis- experiments with the idea that
electricity might furnish all the re-
quisites Of sunlight in the development
OF plant growth. 1851 Herve-M May
non made the first experiment with
electric light in this direction. He
found that this light applied to plants
in badly lighted places resulted in a
grow tn equal to that when plants had
the benefit of sunlight. Wolkoff, in
1866, discovered that cross grown in
the dark and exposed to few hours
of light produced by q Bunsen burner,
turned green, the same as if grown in
the sunlight. DR.. Siemens made q
sunlight Of his own by placing all
electric light Of 400 candle power in
the midst of his plants, and at a dis
lance Of two metres, he found it equal
to average daylight at the season of
the year in which he wqs experiment
ing. He found the results the same so
far as plant developments was con-
cerned, as though the plants were
under the direct influence of daylight.
He found more than tllis-the growth
of vegetation was greatly accelerated.
The electric light was found compe-
tent to produce all the mechanical CT
fects Of daylight, such as bringing
about the re-erection Of foliage plants
that "sleep" at night. Mature says
that seedlings of mustard which had
never seen daylight, were quite as
green and vigorous as those which had
never been subject to the artificial
light. The same result was shown by
the foliage Of carrots, and those which
had been illuminated naturally by
day and artificially by night had
leaves which were palpably taller and
greener than those which, whether
from natural or artificial sources, had
only enjoyed smaller amount of IL
lumination.' The London DasZu
NeaOs says that DR.. Siemens exhibited
to an audience before whom he lee
tured, pot of tulips in bud, which
the electric light brought into full
bloom in some three quarters of an
hour. Time and further experiments
will demonstrate more fully the
actual value of this discovery. Its
application is limitless--as it can be
used to hasten the growth Of plants,
foliage, flowers, ETC., so extensively
used during the winter, and now
grown by horticulturists at great
care and expense, and which will.sz1-
ways be in demand by the wealthy.
The application Of electricity to
plant growth is another Of these grand
experiments with this subtitle life
power, as we may almost call it, going
on to-day. How it may affect demon
STATIONS in other scientific directions
is not easily foretold, but in relation
to horticulture probably the summing
up Of Nature is pretty correct. It
says:
.'Its use in horticulture will in all
probability be limited to the gardens
of the wealthy, where there will be
no difficulty in employing it to make
plants grow at double their normal
speed If that is ever practically found
worth while. 1t may also perhaps he
found available in accelerating and
supplementing the effect of our tardy
and penurious sunlight in ripening
fruit. But the. scientific interest Of
its present application must rest main
ly on the fact that the cycle Of the
transformation of energy engaged in
plant life is now complete, and that,
starting from the energy stored up in
vegetable fuel, we can run through the
changes from heat to electricity, and
thence to light, which we now know
We can store up in vegetable fuel
again." -s-- -a-...