United States Department of Agriculture - Forest Service	Southern Research Station 200 Weaver Boulevard P.O. Box 2680 Asheville, NC 28802
	Date:   June 18, 2001 Science Contact: Jim Barnett Phone: 318-473-7216 News Release Contact: Melissa Carlson Phone: 828-257-4849 mcarlson01@fs.fed.us

USDA Forest Service Scientist Invents Greenhouse Lighting Device

(Asheville, NC) Dr. Richard Tinus of the USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station, Flagstaff, AZ, invented the "Beamflicker" greenhouse illuminating device to provide cost-efficient lighting for an entire greenhouse using a single stationary light fixture. The device is an oscillating parabolic mirror behind a sodium arc lamp that flicks beams of light from one end of a greenhouse to the other, providing intermittent light. Plants need light at night to maintain vegetative growth, prevent bud dormancy, induce flowering in long-day plants, and to prevent flowering in short-day plants. The Beamflicker meets those needs with one easily installed fixture at a lower cost than other systems. The patent for the Beamflicker has been licensed to Hydrofarm, Inc., of Petaluma, CA. The effective date of the license is June 7, 2001.

Dr. Tinus, a plant physiologist, has over 34 years of experience researching greenhouse container systems for growing tree and shrub seedlings. In 2000, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award for his many contributions to nursery science from the Western Forest and Conservation Nursery Association.

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