Does sugar assist in the growth of plants?
Occasionally, a small amount of sugar is mixed with water and given to a plant that has wilted due to lack of watering for some time. This sugar can aid the plant in recovering quickly. Nevertheless, this method is not always effective, and there are instances where the plant may be too far gone to be salvaged. Generally, sugar is not added to the water provided to healthy, normal plants. Research indicates that during photosynthesis, plants utilize sugar as a source of energy.
The impact of water loss in wilted plants and cut flowers is a similar phenomenon, characterized by a reduction in turgor pressure (the pressure of water within the cells). While the effects on cut flowers are permanent, a wilted plant may have the potential to revive. Plants possess small openings in their leaves, referred to as stomata, which facilitate the exchange of O2 and CO2, but also lead to the loss of H2O.
In theory, there exists a continuous water column extending from the tip of a plant's roots to its highest leaves (similar to a chain of water molecules). As H2O evaporates from the upper parts, it effectively pulls the chain of water molecules upward from the roots. Provided that this turgor pressure is sustained, the plant will remain upright and not wilt or droop.
However, under conditions of insufficient water and/or elevated temperatures, which lead to increased evaporation from the leaves (a process known as transpiration), the water column may eventually become discontinuous. Nonetheless, when the stomata close, the plant can partially reverse this situation by releasing stored water from adjacent cells, thus restoring the continuity of the water column within the plant. Water also plays a crucial role in photosynthesis, where it is decomposed to provide oxygen, hydrogen ions, and electrons. Its significance in photosynthesis is paramount.
No water no photosynthesis. So what the point? Well, the function of photosynthesis is to produce energy in the form of sugars (e.g. glucose, etc.) In the case of the cut flowers, you are temporarily breaking the water column in the plant, which is why you are supposed to cut the stems under water with something sharp.
The cut flowers are immediately put into a vase full of water or even cut in this container.
A sugar, antioxidant and anti-microbial agent (the little packets that come with cut-flowers) is poured into the vase. This solution replenishes the plants food supplies temporarily, since the water column was disrupted and food may have been lost. Flowers last much longer in the sugary solution, than in plain tap water or deionized water for that matter. Also, cutting the flowers after a day or to increases the water transport/transpiration potential of the plant. In the case of the wilted plant, sugar might temporarily help the plant, but in the absence of water any effect will be trivial and short-lived. The plant can make its own food when intact. It can't make its own water.
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Does sugar help plants grow? VIDEO :
