Plants That Light Up Might Be Streetlights in the Future
Remember Avatar? That’s pretty much the world we’re living in right now. Behold the latest science creation: the auto-luminescent plant. No, you’re not dreaming. If you haven’t heard of this yet, the first plant to ever glow sans chemicals was established in 2010 by Alexander Krichevsky of BioGlow, and now companies like Glowing Plant (which was successfully funded on Kickstarter) are getting in on the action.
How does it work? Krichevsky studied bioluminescent marine bacteria and found a way to introduce some of it into plant’s chloroplasts. His first creation, a Nicotiana alata variety that he nicknamed Starlight Avatar, emitted a dim light. In the next generation, he was able to achieve brightness, and says colors might even be an option in the future.
Seeing as this is the first glowing creation to produce light without chemicals, it’s an environmental breakthrough. Krichevsky hopes to one day produce plants as an eco-friendly, alternative light source that’s so bright, you can read a book or light up roads with them at night. Although critics may not agree with this aim, at the very least, creating your own glowing plant wonderland seems like a cool alternative.
Glowing Plant couldn’t be happier about spreading the light. Since their aforementioned Kickstarter, they’re offering seeds to pre order for $40, a pre-grown plant for $100 and a glowing rose for $150. It may seem pricey, but these will almost certainly go up in value once they officially hit production. And you’re paying
Would you buy plants that glow in the dark? Show us the light in the comments below!
(Photos Skep Vilagunk, Urban Gardens and BioGlow)
