Seed germination, root, shoot and leaf development in plants exposed to 900 Mhz radiation

Plants need water, soil and sunlight to grow. Sunlight covers the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. Besides the visible region, non-ionized electromagnetic spectrum is also effective in plant growth. Thus, specific bands used in commerce or public services worth investigating. This study, in paticular, focuses on 900 MHz mobile phone frequency and characterizes how exposure to this frequency affetcs the physical and morphological features of plants during development. Nine different plant species; cowpea, zucchini, cucumber, chickpea, corn, watermelon, pepper, tomato and sesame were exposed to 900 MHz frequency by means of a wave source (~200 mV/m). Pots with seeds were positioned around circle equidistance distance of 30 cm from the antenna and in the middle there is the antenna of the electromagnetic wave source. Radiation shielding fabric was used to separate the control and excitation (radiation) groups. The experiment was repeated twice. Environment was controlled to minimize the variations in parameters. Seed germination, rooting and shoot and leaf development was followed both quantitavely and qualitatively from seeding to 24 days of growth. These experiments were repeated twice. In the second experiment, a greenhouse was set up to prevent the plants from being damaged due to the decrease in temperature. In the first experiment, germination started from the 3rd day. average germination rate was 56%, root length was ~11 cm. In repetition, the decrease in temperature increased the germination rate (74%), but germination started after one week. Stems were thicker, leaves were larger and more vibrant. Root length was ~12 cm. Enlarging the pot size increased root fringing. The plants in each experiment were evaluated on their own. However, exposure to 900 MHz electromagnetic radiation, overal,did not seem to affect germination, shoot and leaf growth, and root length in all plant species. But, this information may be of great valuable to the cell phone carrier operating on this frequency. In addition, conducting similar experiments with plants at different frequency bands and utilizing the results to achieve plant productivity and enable timely harvesting would be appropriate.