Time for growth. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38330113/)

These scientists wanted to understand how plants grow quickly when there are longer days. They found out that plants can measure how long they are active and use this information to grow faster.

To study this, the scientists observed different plants in a special room where they could control the amount of light the plants received. They wanted to see if the plants would grow differently depending on how long they were exposed to light.

First, they put some plants in a room with short days, where they only got a little bit of light. Then, they put other plants in a room with long days, where they got a lot of light.

The scientists measured how fast the plants grew in each room. They found that the plants in the long days grew faster than the plants in the short days. This means that the plants can sense how long they are active and use this information to grow quickly when there are longer days.

By understanding how plants grow, scientists can help farmers and gardeners grow plants more efficiently and have bigger harvests.

Buckley CR., Haydon MJ. Time for growth. Science. 2024 Feb 9;383(6683):589-590. doi: 10.1126/science.adn5189. Epub 2024 Feb 8.