Native Plants
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Sunday - December 18, 2005
From: Saint Louis, MO
Region: Midwest
Topic: General Botany
Title: Consequences of leaving geranium in dark room
Answered by: Nan Hampton and Joe Marcus
QUESTION:
What would happen to a geranium plant that was left to grow in a dark room for many days?ANSWER:
Light is necessary for photosynthesis, the process by which the plant makes its food. If a geranium plant (or any other green plant) is grown in the dark, it will become tall and spindly and turn pale and yellow. This phenomenon is called etiolation. The plant will be putting its energy into lengthening to try to find light so that it can photosynthesize and putting very little energy into making chlorophyll; thus, it grows tall and loses its green color. Left in the dark long enough, it will die because it cannot photosynthesize to produce energy for cell division and growth.More General Botany Questions
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