Mommy, Daddy, what makes wine grape leaves green.

[corinth]

I do not know squat about wine making but I appreciate all that you have shared with me so since you have this Chit chat page, I think is great.

So here is my question: Why do we see the green leaves in grapes green and not another color?

I know you all have some obvious answers but this question concerns more of the physics of color. I think light theory and color is really interesting stuff and NO, I am not trying to be "high and mighty." just sharing a bit of info to thank all of you for so much that you know.

Whatever you answer, I will NEVER be sarcastic or be impolite or condescending. That aint my way and never has been. I hope i get about five responses or more and I hope a lot of people view part of the answer as every answer leads to another question.

 

[Poni]

Chlorophyll! Yes! Right?

 

[JohnT]

Yes, chlorophyll..

This compound is lies at the center of the photosynthetic process. In this process, sunlight, co2, and water are turned into simply sugars (which combine to form starches and other building blocks of plants).

With only few exceptions, like fungus (which are not normally green), all plants use photosynthisys to grow.

When leaves change color in the fall, it is because the leaves have died and the chlorophyll in them has decomposed.

 

[Downwards]

Here's more fun facts on that. Chlorophyll is not actually green it only reflects green. But that's true of everything that is a color. The interesting thing about that to me is that it tells us what spectrum of light green plants want to absorb and therefore not reflect- the blue and red spectrum. But there are other pigments in the leaves that have other jobs- and we see them when the leaf is dying and the chlorophyll is gone- red, yellow, etc. The reason that deciduous leaves change color.

 

[jswordy]

Nuh-uh! It's the plant fairy!

 

[jamesngalveston]

Well you got me stumped, because I dont see green leaves...I see blue leaves....because I am colored blind with greens and blues..
haha. yelp i see them opposite of everyone else...kinda weird but I have learned to live with it.....my ocean is allways green my grass always blue.
Go figure.

 

[jswordy]

Uh, whut color is yer sky? Just wondering...

 

[Rampage4all]

My wild grapes in Louisiana have purple leaves every few years.

 

[jamesngalveston]

my sky well...kinda greenish blue...depends on the clouds.
i have seen grapes with purple leaves.

 

[corinth]

why are green leaves on grapes green

Wow,
After a mere three answers, you folks know your stuff!

Everyone so far has touched on a different aspect all of which is correct. I said at the beginning that each answer always leads to another question?

"Downwards", you sound a bit like me in that you said "the interesting thing about that to me." You have nailed down so much of the color physics that I know you are being modest.

Poni: Chlorophyll is correct!

John T: you know your biology better than I do! Will you grow my grape vines for me?

Yup, it starts with the electromagnetic spectrum which ranges from gamma rays on one side which are harmful but essential for stuff like radiation therapy to the other side of the spectrum which are not harmful like infrared(where did I leave my T.V remote).

In the middle of the spectrum we have something called visual light, heat, the visual spectrum, color from purple to red.

This spectrum shines down on our plants and they absorb the light rays, go through the process of photosynthesis(Photon is the smallest particle of observable light( photon torpedo's!) and then there is the process of reflection which goes out from the plant Where, how and why?


I know you folks are going to nail this and that is why you folks know how to make wine cause you know the details and that everything in the universe effects everything else
(I think Thor would disagree, however!)

All of this is just for fun but I have always been fascinated by light theory!

 

[sour_grapes]

Wow,
and then there is the process of reflection which goes out from the plant Where, how and why?

Are you asking why dielectric materials reflect light?

It is because (in absence of any surface charge or current) the normal components of the B and D fields must be equal across any interface between two materials of different dielectric properties. Similarly, the tangential components of the E and H fields must also be equal across the interface.

For an electromagnetic wave incident on a dielectric, it is not possible to satisfy these boundary conditions if there is only a transmitted electromagnetic wave. In order to satisfy these conditions, there must also be a component of the wave that is reflected back into the original medium.

 

[corinth]

Mommy, why are grape leaves green

OOPs, again, I forgot to acknowledge the rest of you--my Apologies!

HM?? if there is a plant fairy, I am too old to even take a gander but the plant fairy looks a lot like Sandra Bullock...well to me at least.

I think the question "what color is the sky in my world funny. I would often tell that to one of my friends when they said something that was truly odd? However, for those individuals who take stuff like LSD, the sky and color take on a whole new meaning!

However, I digress. The color of my sky is usually tinged with a grayish haze at times (no such color as gray)but that leads to a whole "nother area which I will try to touch upon as soon as I look over my notes and you folks help me!

JamesGalveston: Kinda makes you wonder about Kentucky blue grass, don't it?

Fascinating stuff! keep those cards and letters coming!

 

[corinth]

Mommy, Daddy, why are the leaves in grapes green

Sour Grapes:
Wow, in the words of Darth Vader," Impressive, most impressive." I am going to have to look up some of what you have said "cause" it shore is sophisticated but as always...I am fascinated!

Actually, I am asking a different Question or questions?

One is the color green we see really the color of the green leaves.

Two: What part of our brain interprets this color and how.

I know you folks will know the answer to this one.

PS: A side note: the actual color of the grapes themselves is more complicated than I can understand. It does however have to do with genetic mutation of the that takes place in the variety of grapes( I think there are over 5000 but don't quote me) and then you have the other factors come into play that we have mentioned before.

When this is finally done---if ever, then I will try , with your help, to summarize what everybody has said. That will not be easy.

I will then try to bring up some fun facts or activities that you can do with your children or grandchildren.

 

[sour_grapes]

Let me put some of that in more laymen's terms, or, actually, what I want to do is to present a cheesy analogy for that process.

Consider a rope that is light (thin), and then is spliced to a rope that is quite heavy (thick). The ropes are stretched out. Now imagine that you hold the light rope, and wiggle it up and down to send a train of wave pulses along it. When the wave train hits the splice, some of the wave continues into the heavy rope, of course. However, some of the wave is reflected back into the lighter rope. This is because certain conditions have to be met everywhere, and, in particular, at the interface between the ropes. Momentum and energy must be conserved. It turns out that it is not possible to conserve the momentum and energy of the wave train without have a backscattered component, that is, a wave that is reflected from this interface, and that travels back along the light rope towards you.

 

[Downwards]

Color is not really an objective thing (especially for you right?) but is actually just an interpretation our brains make of the spectrum of light our eyes are seeing. If there are no eyes or brains, there are no colors. As far as spectrum of light goes, that is objective as it can get, though we name the spectrums for the colors we see them as, but there are other spectrums we are blind in even while other animals can see in them.
White is all the colors we can see together, so anything that appears white to you is actually just reflecting all the colors we see in, but what color is it? That's not really a question that makes sense unless you have something to see with. Anyone who knows more about this stuff, please correct anything I say that is wrong here. I've just taken lots of classes relevant to this stuff, but they are pretty basic classes- Anatomy, Physiology, Chemistry, Plant Biology...

Your color blindness actually sounds interesting to me, it's not the common variety is it? Most people are red- green color blind.

 

[sour_grapes]

Actually, I am asking a different Question or questions?

One is the color green we see really the color of the green leaves.

Yes. By definition.

 

[corinth]

Mommy, Daddy, why are the leaves in grapes green

The old Chinese proverb " Be careful what you ask for" comes into play here!
Sour-Grapes: I love the way you took a very sophisticated concept and put it into layman's or laywomen's terms. I spent some time reading on Dielectric materials and the transmission of energy and it still makes my head spin but is fascinating! If there is a particular website that would further educate me, I would be grateful!

I think you are totally right and would not question your physics no-how.
The Dielectric material does not seem(correct me if I am wrong and I probably am ) to apply to living plants as they utilize light rays does it but it does appear to explain how we see color in non living things such as a green chair. Again, correct me if I am wrong and I probably am.

I would love to sit down with one someday as we share info but that will probably not occur in this lifetime but who knows!

Humility opens many doors and am humbled but not sure which door to open at this point!

 

[corinth]

Mommy, Daddy, why are the leaves in grapes green

Downwords:

I did not want to leave you out as you so eloquently replied with some great stuff!

Color is not objective thing but that will always be up to debate which depends on which physicist was the mentor. Our brains do interpret color in that once the light rays which are not necessarily utilized by plant(green makes it simple) it enters our eyes, goes to the back of the eyeball and stimulates color cones which are red, green and blue. The green cone is stimulated and is sent to another part of our brain which we then associate a name with it! Mommy said it is green so after awhile, unless we are colorblind--we learn it is green!

You are definitely right that with the Electromagnetic spectrum there is a wide range of wavelength we do not see since our eyes were not meant to see these.

As for other Animals, some reptiles have excellent infrared abilities while other animals do not see color at all. It reminds me of a Matador who waves the Red cape at the bull. The bull cannot see red--it only is ticked off by this guy waving that stupid cape!

Some Birds have tissue that is actually magnetized so that is why they can migrate thousands of miles since they lock into the magnetic field which surrounds the earth and can fly from south America way up north. NO GPS needed!

I think everything you are saying makes perfect sense even though the real expert here is Sour_Grapes.

As for the green color we see from a green leaf? Correct me if I am wrong but those wavelengths (green) are reflected out into our eyes since not all of the wavelength is necessary for the plant to utilize for Photosynthesis.

So, is the plant really green? Plants use red and infrared from the sun for energy and green is not necessarily the wavelength that plants use so they in simple terms--spit them out and we see GREEN!

This is put simply because I am not including the biology that was mentioned before by another member.
ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM

Gamma rays- x-rays ---ultraviolet--visual spectrum--- infrared-radar-FM-TV-
(these are harmful) (visual spectrum) (not harmful)
Visual spectrum very small which are eyes can see
V
Heat or color(combined called white sunlight or radiant energy
V
Purple-Blue - green- yellow- orange- red

Almost next to last, Colorblindness or color deficiency is the lack of cones in the eye(generally). Red is the most common and from there it gets into very rare types.It can any combination but those with no color cones at all we see them as "albinos" and they are very sensitive to light and cancer.

Plant Fairy: I guess they exist as they seem to carry sunlight and rain to our plants

Correct anything that you wish--the neurons in my brain are overloaded!

Lastly, If you were to ask my grandson why the leaves are green, he would say, "because it is my favorite color"

 

[LeChat]

..because I am colored blind with greens and blues..
haha. yelp i see them opposite of everyone else...k

Hey... That's not how color blindness works. Someone that is color blind is unable to differentiate between the two colors.

Are you sure you just don't know your colors?

Lol, it happens!

 

[jamesngalveston]

been color blind my whole life...lol but thanks...first encounter was when i was about 5, my mom gave me a shirt for school and I told here i did not like green shirts, she....kinda shocked said it was blue....lol