Changes in ultraviolet-B and visible optical properties and absorbing pigment concentrations in pecan leaves during a growing season

UV-B (280-320 nm) and visible (400-760 nm) spectral reflectance, transmittance, and absorptance; chlorophyll content; UV-B absorbing compound concentration; and leaf thickness were measured for pecan (Carya illinoensis) leaves over a growing season (April-October). Leaf samples were collected monthly from a pecan plantation located on the Southern University Horticultural Farm, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The leaf spectral reflectance and transmittance were measured from 280 to 760 nm using a high-accuracy UV-Vis spectroradiometer with an integrating sphere. The spectral absorptance was calculated based on the reflectance and transmittance percentages. Total UV-B absorbing compounds concentration (A280-320 nm (cm-2)), chlorophyll content, and leaf thickness were related to the leaf optical properties. The patterns of the spectral distributions of optical properties over the growing season, effects of leaf age on the measured parameters, and their relationships were determined. Leaf optical properties were significantly affected by leaf age and the effects were more dramatic in the visible spectral region than in the UV-B region. Within the UV-B spectral region, leaf reflectance ranged between 4.27% (April) and 8.29% (July), transmittance between 0.01% (June) and 0.05% (April), and absorptance between 91.70% (July) and 95.68% (April). Within the visible spectral region, leaf optical properties changed significantly with the wavelength and leaf development. The visible spectral reflectance and transmittance had maxima at 555 nm and minima at 680 nm, and increased sharply afterwards. The highest visible spectral reflectance and transmittance occurred in the newly developed leaves, whereas the visible spectral absorptance increased with leaf maturation. Leaf chlorophyll content, thickness, and UV-B absorbing compound concentration significantly increased during leaf development (April-July). Correlation and regression analyses indicated that leaf chlorophyll content was a strong predictor of the green light reflectance, transmittance, and absorptance. The strongest predictors of UV-B reflectance were leaf thickness and leaf UV-B absorbing compound concentrations.