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Buddy · 15-05-2007, 03:14 PM posted to sci.bio.botany

so bravely stated:
In article ,
Buddy why.wood.yew@bother wrote:
I came across the following quote, and many plants are
nocturnal, plants of the nightshade family; tomatoes, potatoes,
peppers, eggplant, etc. only grow at night... they store up energy
during daylight but don't actually grow until it's dark.
Is this true? Can anyone site a source for this information?

I suspect this is somebody's folk etymology for the term "nightshade".

I know most plants consume CO2 in the day and O2 at night, but the above
statement seems counter intuitive.

Actually, they consume O2 all the time, but with light, they can
photosynthesize, consuming CO2 and producing sugars and oxygen.
As to actual growth, i.e. producing more and larger cells, they
do that all the time, as long as they have enough light, water,
heat, nutrients, etc, except when dormant, of course.
Thanks for the reply.

Remembering a bit from high school, aren't we talking about ATP/ADP -
photosynthesis vs. respiration? Or are photosynthesis and respiration
concurrent and not separated by night and day.

TIA

--
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't hold his head under 'til
the bubbles stop.
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XX: Buddy