Efecto de luz LED sobre semillas de Capsicum annuum L. var. serrano

Serrano pepper ( Capsicum annuum L.) is a crop of economic, nutritional and medicinal importance; so it is necessary to increase its production and improve its characteristics. The objective of this research was to evaluate the stimulatory effect of light emitting diodes (LEDs) on serrano pepper seedlings. Germination percentage, stem length, leaf width, leaf length, number of leaves, total chlorophyll content and carotenoid content were analyzed. The seeds were exposed to white, blue and red LED light, using fluorescent light as a control and a photoperiod of 11/13 hours. Once germinated, the seedlings continued with exposure to light for 30 days. After the laboratory conditions, the seedlings were transferred to a greenhouse for 60 days. The results show that there were no significant differences between LED light treatments on seed germination. The variables stem length, leaf width and leaf length, were favored with red light. Blue and red LEDs highlighted by increasing the number of leaves. Seedlings treated with blue light showed the highest content of photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll= 0.84 mg g -1 , carotenoid= 0.12 mg g -1 ). In conclusion, the red LED light is effective for the growth of serrano pepper seedlings, while the production of photosynthetic pigments was favored by blue LED light. Keywords: peppers, light-emitting diodes, germination, growth, photosynthetic pigments