Why are most plants green?

Why are most plants green?

🌿 Plants are perceived as green because of their pigments. 

ℹ️ In essence, a pigment means a coloring material; it is a dye, a paint. But in biology, a pigment, by definition, refers to a colored substance naturally produced by an organism.

🌿 Inside the plant cell are small organelles called chloroplasts, which store the energy of sunlight. Within the thylakoid membranes of the chloroplast is a light-absorbing pigment called chlorophyll.

🇫🇷 🔬🧪 French pharmacists, Joseph Bienaimé Caventou and Pierre Joseph Pelletier, coined the term “chlorophyll” in 1817 (Greek “chloros”, meaning “green” and “phyllon”, meaning “leaf”).  

🌿 It’s chlorophyll which is responsible for giving the plant its green color. The chlorophyll pigments do not absorb well the green wavelength of the visible light, but do absorb well blue and red light. During photosynthesis, chlorophyll reflects green-light waves, which reach our eyes and so we perceive plants as green.