Photo: Polythene film

Plants grown with light limited by polyethylene film. Photo caption: On the left of the picture are to be seen Kalanchoe plants which were subjected to short day treatment for three weeks in August. This was done by placing black polyethylene film, based on Bakelite materials, over the cold frames in which the plants were housed. The untreated plants are seen on the right. The Hertfordshire Institute, of Agriculture at St. Albans, who conducted the experiment, estimate that the flowering of the 'treated' plants has been brought forward 2-3 months by this technique. Black polyethylene film has several important advantages for this work. It is completely opaque, tough, light in weight, easily handled and resistant to the elements. Its initial cost is low and it can be re-used. This item is part of the MoDiP BXL collection.

BXL : 0625