INTRODUCTION

As time passes by, the population of the Philippines continues to increase rapidly,

resulting to poverty, pollution, and shortage of supplies, especially in food and water. Lack of

food and clean water leads to hunger and malnutrition; a problem that the country has been

facing head on for years. According to the survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations

(SWS), an estimated 3.1 million Filipino families experienced involuntary hunger in 2016. One

possible reason for growing hunger among Filipinos is slow-paced food production. The

production of food cannot keep up with the growing population, hence, the inadequacy.

People inclined with botany and farmers alike use different methods to increase the pace

of the growth of their crops and plants such as the usage of organic fertilizers, inorganic

fertilizers, and chemicals, but most of which are costly and have harmful side effects on the

plants and the environment.

It is essential for new methods that aren’t costly to be discovered in order to efficiently

increase the pace of growth of edible plants and vegetables.

According to previous studies by Aakansha et. al (2015) & Narayanan (2012) different

wavelengths and colour of light have effects on the growth of plants. If this proves to be

efficient, then a new method of speeding up the pace of plant growth while maintaining its

quality can be adapted for a faster production of food and a better economy.

With the current state of the Philippines with regards to its environment and economy,

most resources and materials have become scarce, resulting to problems such as poverty,

pollution, and famine. Famine – which according to the Food Aid Foundation is experienced by

approximately 795 million people in the world, and 3.1 million families in the Philippines SWS

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(2016) – is attributed to slow food production, which is possibly caused by the use of outdated

technology in the Philippines, and the poor knowledge on new methods and techniques to

propagate, cultivate and farm crops and plants.

With this project, the researchers hypothesize that the Okra plants exposed to red light,

will grow taller and will have a higher and faster growth rate as opposed to the plants exposed to

other colors. The Okra plants exposed to green light, on the other hand, will grow the least. The

chlorophyll in the plants won’t absorb green light. Since the substance itself is green, it will

reflect the green light instead of absorbing it.

This research aims to discover how different colors of light can affect the growth of a

plant, specifically Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus), and to determine which of the colors prove to

give beneficial or detrimental effects to plants. This research also aims to help find a way to

improve the plants’ growth rate in a shorter span of time. In addition, the results of this research

can possibly help determine if it would be beneficial for farmers, botanists, and people who are

inclined with planting, to expose their plants to a specific color of light during their growth cycle.

This study covers the discernment of the effects of different colors of light on the growth

of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and is restricted under the following conditions: the same kind

of plant, which is Okra, the same duration of the experiment, the same sample size, the same set-

up, the same kind of soil, the same amount of exposure to sunlight, the same amount of

precipitation, etc. Due to uncontrollable variables such as weather, surrounding temperature, and

pest epidemic in an area, however, there may be variances in the possible outcomes of this

research during replication.

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Review of Related Literature and Related Studies

A wavelength is a property of a wave that is the distance between identical points

between two successive waves. The distance between one crest (or trough) of one wave and the

next is the wavelength of the wave. (Helmenstine, 2017)

Photosynthesis is the process used by plants, algae and certain bacteria to harness energy

from sunlight into chemical energy. (Vidyasagar, 2015)

Okra Abelmoschus esculentus L. (Moench), is an economically important vegetable crop

grown in tropical and sub-tropical parts of the world. This crop is suitable for cultivation as a

garden crop as well as on large commercial farms. It is known by many local names in different

parts of the world. It is called lady’s finger in England, gumbo in the United States of America,

guino-gombo in Spanish, guibeiro in Portuguese and bhindi in India. Okra is cultivated for its

green non-fibrous fruits or pods containing round seeds. The fruits are harvested when immature

and eaten as a vegetable. It provides an important source of vitamins, calcium, potassium and

other mineral matters which are often lacking in the diet in developing countries. (Department of

Biotechnology, 2011)

Green plants are a broad assemblage of photosynthetic organisms that all contain

chlorophylls a and b, they store their photosynthetic products as starch inside the double-

membrane-bounded chloroplasts in which it is produced, and have cell walls made of cellulose.

(McCourt, R. et al, 2009)

Chlorophyll is a complex organic molecule that enables plants, and some other

organisms, to carry out photosynthesis — the conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) and water

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(H2O) to glucose (C6H12O6) and oxygen (O2) using sunlight. (http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-

chlorophyll.htm)

The simplest definition of light is “visually perceived radiant energy". “Visible” light is

just a small segment of the electromagnetic spectrum— a broad range of radiant energy which

also includes X-rays, ultraviolet and infrared energy, micro-waves and radio waves.

(https://www.sylvania.com/en-us/innovation/education/light-and-color/Pages/the-science-of-

light.aspx)

Different colors of light are a result of wavelengths that are reflected back into our eyes.

(https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/47-colours-of-light)

Reflection and transmission of light waves occur because the frequencies of the light

waves do not match the natural frequencies of vibration of the objects.

(http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/light/Lesson-2/Light-Absorption,-Reflection,-and-

Transmission)

White light is defined as the complete mixture of all of the wavelengths of the visible

spectrum. This means that if I have beams of light of all of the colors of the rainbow and focus

all of the colors onto a single spot, the combination of all of the colors will result in a beam of

white light. (https://study.com/academy/lesson/white-light-definition-source-spectrum.html)

In science, sunlight may be defined as the total frequency spectrum of the

electromagnetic radiation that is emitted by the Sun. The sun is the most obvious source of white

light in our solar system. (https://study.com/academy/lesson/white-light-definition-source-

spectrum.html)

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 According to Snowden (2015) in the study “Effects of Blue and Green Light on Plant

Growth and Development at Low and High Photosynthetic Photon Fllux”, he concluded that

light is used less efficiently in photosynthesis. Therefore, it is apparent that other interacting

factors alter the effect of light quality on photosynthetic efficiency.

In the study “The Effects of Light Color on Plant Growth” by Almasy (2014), he stated

that, the blue light plant grew the fastest and the highest. And the red, the color he predicted that

would grow the highest, was the third tallest plant after one week. In last was the plant without

any cellophane. He concluded that the best way to grow a plant fast would be to use blue light

and not to use no color at all.

According to Robinson and Gosse (2014) on their Biology III Research Project: Effect of

Different Colored Lights on Brassica Rapa Growth, the color in which plants are grown in does

have an effect on plant growth. Blue and red light appear to supply a significant amount of

energy to plants in comparison to visible light and green light.

Based on the study “How Colored Lights Affect Plant Growth” of Smith & Reynolds

(2013), the plants under purple light had the slowest growth rate when compared to other colors

of light.

Brennan (2010) found out through her research that: The plant under the green light did

not grow the fastest. The plant under the green light actually grew the slowest out of the four

plants. The plant that grew the fastest was the plant under the red light. There was a tie between

the plant under the blue and white light. The experiment was only conducted for one week, so

the differences in heights were not drastically different, just fractions of centimeters, but enough

that a trend was noticed.

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 Kalawi (2005) stressed that if you want a healthy plant show the plants the full color

spectrum, but if you want a tall plant you should only show the plant red light.

Raab (2003) on his study Plants Under the Rainbow, concluded that plants need white

light to grow efficiently because plants need all parts of the light spectrum. This experiment

showed that red light is most affective on younger plants. Therefore, a greenhouse could provide

young seedlings with more red light if they want to encourage quick growth. Orange light could

be used only if slow growth was wanted and if the greenhouses wanted the plants to stay about

the same size. Blue light is more affective on older plants. Most of the plants under the blue light

grew slow at first but after reaching a certain height, they started to grow faster. Green light and

no light are highly not recommended.

According to the project “Science Project: Light Absorption and Color Filters”, when

white light shines on a red object, all of the colors that form the white light are absorbed except

red, which is reflected. This is why the object appears red. A filter is a transparent material that

absorbs some colors and allows others to pass through.

Light is the only source of color. Color pigments (paints, dyes, or inks) show color by absorbing

certain parts of the light spectrum and reflecting the parts that remain. Color filters work the

same way, absorbing certain wavelengths of color and transmitting the other wavelengths.

Based on the article “Can Colored Lights Affect How Plants Grow?” different color light

helps plants achieve different goals as well. Blue light, for example, helps encourage vegetative

leaf growth. Red light, when combined with blue, allows plants to flower. Cool fluorescent light

is great for cultivating plant growth indoors. Knowing that different colors of light can affect

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what a plant does is important in a world that depends on plants for food. (Konica Minolta

Sensing Americas, Inc.)

As stated by Kroeze, light is not just essential for plants when it comes to supplying

energy for photosynthesis. By revealing just a small part of the story we have seen how plants

use colours to regulate many of their processes. Plants are capable of perceiving those colours

that matter to them. Those colours give the plant an indication of its general environment and

thus its chances of survival and reproduction.

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 METHODOLOGY
Collection of Materials

The materials utilized for this project are: tape measure, pencil, wood saw, nails, hammer, drill

bit, wood glue, 2 sheets of 4’ x 8’ plywood, 5 plastic coloured filters in red, yellow, green, blue,

and violet, tape, 2 bags of loam soil, and a pack of Okra seeds. These materials were bought in

local hardware stores and nearby garden centres. The sheets of plywood along with the necessary

tools such as the tape measure, hammer, wood glue, etc., are used to assemble a wooden box.

The wooden box served as the container of the plants. The coloured filters, on the other hand, are

used as filters in order to absorb the other colours of light, and reflect a single specific colour on

the plants in order to test out the effects.

Assembling the Setups

Six square boxes are made out of plywood. A portion of the plywood is sawed into 5 pieces: one

measuring 20 x 20 inches (bottom part), and four pieces measuring 20 x 8 inches (sides). The

pieces are attached together by applying wood glue. After the glue has dried, the boxes were

nailed for added robustness. Once the first box is finished, the same process is done with the

other five. The wooden boxes have the following dimensions: height = 8 inches, width = 20

inches, length = 20 inches. Once all six boxes were assembled, pillars made out of bamboo were

attached to the corners with nails. These pillars have a length of 24 inches. Said pillars were used

as support and a place where the plastic filters were attached.

The next step performed was to attach the coloured plastic filters. 3 pieces with a length of 20

inches and a height of 13 inches were cut out of the red plastic. Another piece measuring 20

inches by 20 inches were cut out for the top of the box. Only 3 sides of the container is covered

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for the purpose of allowing air to come in and reach the plants. The side of the box where the

sunlight doesn’t hit isn’t covered with the plastic filter. The pieces of plastic were attached to the

pillars of the box with thumb tacks. Once the corresponding coloured plastics are attached to the

boxes, triangular slits are cut on the top and the 3 sides of the setup. This allows air to pass

through the filters, which lessens the risk of the plastic getting detached from the pillars due to

the force of air.

Planting and Maintenance of the Okra plants

Seven Okra seeds are planted in each setup. The seeds are sowed an inch deep into the soil, and

are 3 inches apart from each other, in order to ensure that the plants wouldn’t crowd around

when they start to germinate. The seeds are watered twice a week with the same amount of water

(20 mL).

When the seeds germinated, the Okra plants are watered twice a week with 40mL of water. The

plants are monitored regularly in order to prevent any disruption during the duration of the

experiment. This process was repeated regularly until the said research was finished.

Collection and Evaluation of Data

Every week, the average height of the plants (quantitative data) from each setup are measured.

The height of all 7 plants from each box are measured in centimeters by using a ruler. Once the

data were collected, it’s summed up and divided by 7 to get the average. For instance, the plants

in setup A measure 5cm, 4cm, 2cm, 2cm, 1.8cm, 5cm, and 3.2cm. The sum of the heights is

33cm. It will be divided by 9, resulting to 3.66…7 cm or 3.7 cm. The average height will be

recorded onto a table for easier comparison. The same thing will be done for the rest of the

setups every week.

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Analyzation of Results

Once all data are collected and the experiment is finished, the next step willbe to analyze the

results. The goal of this research is to find out how different colours of light or how the different

wavelengths of visible light affect the growth of plants, specifically, Okra. In order to determine

which colour of light gave the most beneficial effect, all data collected from each setup every

week will be compared to each other. A deeper research will also be conducted in order to justify

as to why the experiment turned out that way, and explain why different colours of light have

varying effects on Okra. The results of this research will be compared to past researches,

experiments, and studies similar to this one, to search for variances and similarities in the

outcomes of this research.

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 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Table 1. Results for the 1st week with treatment

PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE

A 14.6 10.4 12.1 10.6 9.4 10.8
B 10.2 10 12.6 12.3 12.6 8.3
C 13.7 10.3 5.5 8.5 11.9 10.6
D 13.8 9 12.7 14.7 4.2 3.7
E 10.6 12.5 11.7 9.4 9.4 6.5
F 12.7 8.5 --- 13.4 10.2 8.6
G 13.2 --- --- 6.1 7.1 ---
AVERAGE 12.69 10.06 10.92 10.71 9.26 8.08

WEEK 1
14

12
Height of Plants (cm)

10
RED
8 YELLOW

6 GREEN
BLUE
4
VIOLET
2 NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 1 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the first week with treatment

No observable trend is shown in the graph. The plants exposed to red light grew the tallest on

the first week with treatment, while the plants in the control setup or the plants that did not receive

the treatment grew the shortest.

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 Table 2. Results for the 2nd week with treatment

PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE

A 18.3 14.5 16.4 15.2 12.3 13
B 11.7 14.4 6.5 17.2 15.2 10.3
C 15.5 14.2 14.4 12.5 13.2 12.7
D 16.4 10.5 16 17.2 5.1 6.1
E 13.9 16 17.1 13.7 12.2 8.2
F 15.2 12.7 --- 17.5 12.2 11.8
G 16.6 --- --- 9.9 8.5 ---
AVERAGE 15.37 13.72 14.08 14.74 11.24 10.35

WEEK 2
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16
14
Height of Plants (cm)

12 RED
10 YELLOW
8 GREEN
6 BLUE
4 VIOLET
2 NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 2 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the second week with treatment

No observable trend is shown in the graph. However, the plants exposed to blue light grew

instantaneously, surpassing the average heights of the plants in the setup exposed to green light. The

plants exposed to red light grew the tallest on the second week with treatment, while the shortest

plants came from the control setup.

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 Table 3. Results for the 3rd week with treatment

PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE

A 20.4 16.1 17.3 16.3 14.6 15.1
B 13.2 16.6 8.3 17.1 16.3 10.4
C 17.8 16.3 16.4 13.6 13.7 13.9
D 19.2 12.2 16.5 20.3 5.2 7.3
E 15.7 17.1 17.4 14.4 12.6 9.1
F 16.4 13.3 --- 18.2 14.4 12.8
G 17.2 --- --- 12.1 10.8 ---
AVERAGE 17.13 15.1 15.18 16 12.51 11.43

WEEK 3
18
16
14
Height of Plants (cm)

12 RED
10 YELLOW
8 GREEN
6 BLUE
4 VIOLET
2 NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 3 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the third week with treatment

No observable trend is shown in the graph. The plants exposed to red light remained to be the

tallest among the setups, while the plants in the control setup remained the shortest. The ranks of the

setups in terms of height is similar to that of the results on the 2nd week with treatment.

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 Table 4. Results for the 4th week with treatment
PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
A 23.7 19 20.2 16.4 15.2 17.2
B 14.6 17.5 10.2 17.9 16.8 11.2
C 19.5 18.1 18.1 15.1 15 15.1
D 22 12.3 17.8 20.1 8.6 8.9
E 17.3 18 20.1 15.4 13.4 9.3
F 18.2 14.2 --- 18.6 14.5 14.4
G 19.1 --- --- 13.8 13.6 ---
AVERAGE 19.2 16.02 17.28 16.76 13.87 12.68

WEEK 4
25

20
Height of Plants (cm)

RED
15
YELLOW
GREEN
10
BLUE

5 VIOLET
NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 4 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the fourth week with treatment

No observable trend is shown in the graph. The plants exposed to red light are still the tallest,

while the plants in the setup where treatment wasn’t applied remained to be the shortest. However,

there’s a change between the rank of the average height of the plants between the green setup and

blue setup, with the plants in the green setup surpassing the heights of those exposed to blue light.

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 Table 5. Results for the 5th week with treatment
PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
A 28.6 22.2 22.5 19.8 18.6 21.1
B 15.3 19.9 12.8 20.1 17.3 11.8
C 23.8 20.5 21.7 17.9 15.9 17.6
D 25.7 15.1 21.1 23.9 10.9 10.3
E 19.5 19.8 22.2 19.4 13.2 10.9
F 20.9 16.7 --- 20.3 15.6 17.8
G 21.2 --- --- 19 15.7 ---
AVERAGE 22.14 19.03 20.06 20.06 15.31 14.92

WEEK 5
25

20
Height of Plants (cm)

RED
15
YELLOW
GREEN
10
BLUE

5 VIOLET
NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 5 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the fifth week with treatment

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 Table 6. Results for the 6th week with treatment
PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
A 33.8 24.8 27.1 19.7 22.1 21.8
B 17.2 22.1 15.3 21.5 21.7 12.4
C 28.2 23.7 24.3 19.6 18.2 21.7
D 30.9 16.5 24.6 27.6 11.1 12.3
E 23.8 21.2 24.5 20.5 13.1 11.9
F 25.4 18.4 22.3 18.3 20.1
G 25.3 21.2 18.5
AVERAGE 26.37 21.12 23.16 21.77 17.57 16.7

WEEK 6
30

25
Height of Plants (cm)

20 RED
YELLOW
15
GREEN
10 BLUE
VIOLET
5
NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 6 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the sixth week with treatment

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 Table 7. Results for the 7th week with treatment
PLANT RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
A 41.9 28.7 31.4 22 23.3 27.7
B 16.2 25.3 19.7 22.5 20.5 14
C 31.1 27.9 32.3 20.9 21.6 23.4
D 36.3 21.1 28.2 33.3 12.4 12.3
E 30.4 21.6 27.4 24.6 14.2 14.8
F 29.5 20.6 --- 23.4 19 24.6
G 28.8 --- --- 23.9 20.3 ---
AVERAGE 30.6 24.2 27.8 24.37 18.76 19.47

WEEK 7
35

30
Height of Plants (cm)

25
RED
20 YELLOW

15 GREEN
BLUE
10
VIOLET
5 NONE
0
RED YELLOW GREEN BLUE VIOLET NONE
Colors of Light

Fig. 7 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on the seventh week with treatment

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 35

30

25
RED

20 YELLOW
GREEN

15 BLUE
VIOLET
NONE
10

0
WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3 WEEK 4 WEEK 5 WEEK 6 WEEK 7

Fig. 8 Average height (in centimetres) of Okra plants on all the weeks when treatment was
applied

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CONCLUSION

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RECOMMENDATION

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Idowu, O. O., and Kadiri, M. (2013). Growth and yield response of okra (Abelmoschus

esculentus Moench) to spent mushroom compost from the cultivation of Pleurotus ostreatus an

edible mushroom. Acad. J. Agric.

Department of Biotechnology. (2011). Biology of Abelmoschus esculentus L. Retrieved

from: http://www.envfor.nic.in/divisions/csurv/geac/Biology_of_Okra[1].pdf

Green plants. McCourt, R. et al. (2009). Retrieved from:

http://www.tolweb.org/Green_plants/

Helmenstine, T. (2017, Octobe 15) Wavelength definition in Science. Retrieved from:

https://www.thoughtco.com/definition-of-wavelengt-605948 on January 18, 2018

Vidyasagar, A. (2015, July 31). What is photosynthesis?. Retrieved from:

https://www.livescience.com/51720-photosynthesis.html

Light and color. Retrieved from: https://www.sylvania.com/en-

us/innovation/education/light-and-color/Pages/the-science-of-light.aspx on January 18, 2018

White light: definition, spectrum. Retrieved from:

https://study.com/academy/lesson/white-light-definition-source-spectrum.html on January 18,

2018

Light absorption, reflection, and transmission. Retrieved from:

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/light/Lesson-2/Light-Absorption,-Reflection,-and-

Transmission on January 18, 2018

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 Science project: light absorption and color filters. Retrieved from:

https://www.education.com/science-fair/article/colored-lights-effect/)/ on January 18, 2018

Brennan, M. (2010). Plant growth with different colored lights. Retrieved from:

www.umasd.org/cms/lib7/PA01000379/Centricity/.../science_fair_example1.doc

Snowden, M. C. (2015). Effects of blue & green light on plant growth & development at

low and high photosynthetic photon. Retrieved from:

https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5650&context=etd

Almasy, J. (2014, May 28). The Effects of Light Color on Plant Growth. Retrieved from:

https://prezi.com/0eqnuf6ef9bd/the-effects-of-light-color-on-plant-growth/?webgl=0

Robinson, N. & Gosse, P. (2014). Biology III Research Project: Effect of Different

Colored Lights on Brassica Rapa Growth. Retrieved from:

https://prezi.com/ffiv3ngkqxnh/effect-of-different-colored-lights-on-various-plant-

growth/?webgl=0

Smith, C. & Reynolds, S. (2013). How colored lights affecr plant growth. Retrieved

from: https://prezi.com/zqpg0pogx6sy/how-colored-lights-affect-plant-growth/?webgl=0

Kalawi, A. Z. (2005). Does the color of light affect plant growth. Retrieved from:

http://cssf.usc.edu/History/2005/Projects/J1625.pdf

Raab, S. A. (2003). Plants under the rainbow. Retrieved from:

http://cssf.usc.edu/History/2003/Projects/J1621.pdf

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 Can Colored Lights Affect How Plants Grow. Konica Minolta Sensing Americas, Inc.

Retrieved from: https://sensing.konicaminolta.us/blog/can-colored-lights-affect-how-plants-

grow/

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APPENDICES

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