Uberhoust
Fish Herder
Just came across an article in the New Scientist regarding plastic product that will take normal full spectrum light and in one case absorb the green and release it as slightly longer reddish light, they call it Spectrum Shifting. It is being tested/used to improve green house productivity. The company is called LLeaf, https://www.lleafgrow.com/technical.
They have a product for the aquatic plants that shifts the light towards 590 nm which is more or less yellow. A color I haven't seen in typical aquarium lights, which tend towards the blue side of the spectrum in general. The closest plant pigment that might absorb this wavelength is associated with the Phytochromes, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phyto... many aspects of,of flowering in adult plants. for a quick overview. These pigments are from what I have recently researched are primarily associated with chlorophyll production.
Lleaf is providing a commercial product, and it is in their interest to encourage people to buy into their ideas but it does bring to mind that maybe in general we are missing something in the light we provide our aquarium plants that might serve an important service. I know my lights do not have much in the red or yellow ranges of the spectra and not all my plants seem to grow well. We use PAR ratings but these values relate to the spectra that activate the chlorophylls primarily, but don't necessarily capture all the important wavelengths.
I will be reading up on this more but was curious if other people have looked at the wavelengths we normally don't worry about with our artificial lights. Perhaps as others have said we need to look at having more longer wavelength light in our aquariums to encourage better growth.
They have a product for the aquatic plants that shifts the light towards 590 nm which is more or less yellow. A color I haven't seen in typical aquarium lights, which tend towards the blue side of the spectrum in general. The closest plant pigment that might absorb this wavelength is associated with the Phytochromes, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phyto... many aspects of,of flowering in adult plants. for a quick overview. These pigments are from what I have recently researched are primarily associated with chlorophyll production.
Lleaf is providing a commercial product, and it is in their interest to encourage people to buy into their ideas but it does bring to mind that maybe in general we are missing something in the light we provide our aquarium plants that might serve an important service. I know my lights do not have much in the red or yellow ranges of the spectra and not all my plants seem to grow well. We use PAR ratings but these values relate to the spectra that activate the chlorophylls primarily, but don't necessarily capture all the important wavelengths.
I will be reading up on this more but was curious if other people have looked at the wavelengths we normally don't worry about with our artificial lights. Perhaps as others have said we need to look at having more longer wavelength light in our aquariums to encourage better growth.
