SENSITIVITY OF WATERMELON PLANT GROWTH TO PHOTOMORPHOGENIC SIGNALS DURING THE LIGHT OR DARK PHASE OF THE PHOTOPERIOD

Abstract

Previous research has demonstrated that watermelon plants are sensitive to changes in light quality, as suggested by an individual treatment of plants with 15-min of end-of-day (EOD) red (R)and far-red (FR) light. FR-induced growth responses (i.e., petiole elongation, internode elongation, reduced petiole angles) were reversed by immediately following the FR light treatment with R light implicating phytochrome as the light quality perception mechanism. The objective of the present experiment was to determine the influence of individual and multiple FR light treatments (each treatment of 15-min duration) during the light and dark phase of the photoperiod on photomorphogenic growth responses of young watermelon plants. Light regulated growth responses of watermelon were influenced by the timing and the number of light quality exposures during the light or dark phase of the photoperiod. Individual FR treatments during the light phase except for the EOD exposure did not affect plant growth responses. In contrast, individual FR treatments at selected intervals during the dark period affected plant development. The most effective individual FR treatment to induce growth responses was at the beginning of the dark period, with decreasing responses as the FR treatment was delayed into the dark period. Multiple exposures of FR during the dark slightly increased growth responses as compared to a single EOD FR treatment.