• Question: why do plants lock green on the insides

    Asked by anon-359361 on 21 Mar 2023.
    • Photo: Liz Barron-Majerik

      Liz Barron-Majerik answered on 21 Mar 2023:

      Because the green bits that capture light energy (the chloroplasts) are everywhere that light could reach as the plant needs to capture light wherever it lands on the plant, or where it passes through.

    • Photo: Caroline Stone

      Caroline Stone answered on 21 Mar 2023: last edited 21 Mar 2023 9:41 am

      This is quite a deep question in some ways! The answer that Liz gives about chloroplasts is absolutely correct. The chloroplasts contain chlorophyll, which is a light harvesting pigment, a bit like a solar panel. It looks green because it absorbs all colours other than green light, and the green light bounces back and goes into our eyes.

      But why don’t plants use green light? One reason is that if plants were black and absorbed all light, they would overheat and get damaged! Just think of wearing black clothes in the sun! It’s a bit like a form of sunscreen to reflect green light and not harvest too much light energy.

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