# do trees get jetlag?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-trees-get-jetlag/214107>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [November 19, 2003, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-trees-get-jetlag/214107 "2003-11-19T15:10:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\
**Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-trees-get-jetlag/214107/1 "2003-11-19T15:10:44Z")

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i was just wondering. plants go to ‘sleep’ at night right? what happens when someone set it up so that day and night comes in 2 hour intervals? do they adjust accordingly or get all confused like? (or 1 hour intervals? shorter?)

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**Author:** ![Wheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/4da419/32.png) [@Wheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheel)\
**Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-trees-get-jetlag/214107/2 "2003-11-19T16:17:54Z")

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Depends on the plant.

Poinsettia growers for example control the amt of sunlight their plants get to force the bracts,(those red parts aren’t flowers) to be red at the proper time of year for Christmas sales. If you have a green house nearby that sells poinsettias you can go by and talk to them about it.

Orchid growers do the same thing, to force blooms. Plants are very sensitive to the amt of light they recieve and also to the length of their ‘day’. Every see wild flowers covering a hill on both the north and south side? Notice that one side will be in full bloom while the other side is still green.

I suspect that intervals of 1 or 2 hours would be too short for the plants to respond to, but I’m sure someone will be along to straighten me out soon.